After the Storm
by vanillathunder215
Summary: What's wrong with the hero of Cyrodiil? Is it grief over Martin or something else? Something bigger than Deadra threaten the world...again. WARNING! spoilers for end of game & game in general! CHPT. 16 is UP! Reviews always welcome!
1. After the Battle

"Champion of Cyrodiil!"

The words rang in his head over and over again as he staggered towards the looming shadow of Cloud Ruler Temple. It had taken him nearly a week to meander from the ruined Imperial City to west of Bruma.

He had fought so hard for a country not his own. Given up so much. He was from Valenwood, a Wood Elf, not an Imperial. He had come to Cyrodiil about a year ago, searching for something his homeland could not offer. Somehow or another he had ended up in prison, where a chance encounter had landed him in a situation he had never even dreamed of.

Now, after adventures into dangerous dungeons and fights with deadly deadra, it was over. Nearly half a year of danger, excitement, anxiety, joy and much sadness and it was over. He felt drained; emotionally, physically and psychologically. After the final battle in the Imperial City, fighting against overwhelming odds as deadra poured in from numerous gates and as Mehrunes Dagon himself appeared, he had stayed long enough after the end to hear Chancellor Ocato talk to him and then departed.

Badly injured from powerful deadra and dremora, he had no idea where to go. He briefly toyed with the idea of going to Chorrol, where Moderyn Oryen of the Fighter's Guild might help, but it had been embarrassing enough waking up from a hist sap stupor in his house. He might be a brother there, but he had brothers and sisters elsewhere that he could turn to. So he went to Cloud Ruler Temple.

It got colder and colder the farther north he went. His wounds festered quickly and he burned with fever despite the chill. His delirious mind played the events of the final battle over and over in his mind, especially the part when he realized that Martin was never coming back, that Cyrodiil was still without an emperor. To him the words in his new title, "Champion of Cyrodiil" were a mockery. If he hadn't restored Martin to the throne then he didn't deserve it.

The steep path to the temple proved too much for his weakened body and he fell into the snow, giving in to the overwhelming urge to sleep.

Up on the battlements of Cloud Ruler Temple, Caroline saw something fall into the snow and lie still. She could tell it a person but she couldn't see specifically who it was. Turning she called out to her fellow Blades to go rescue the person, if he still lived. Unable to leave her post but able to see all that went on, she watched as 2 sturdy males ran down the path to the still form. She heard voices but was unable to pick out individual words. She felt a slight breath of relief when she saw them gently pick up the person's body and carefully made their way back up the path. As they got closer, she recognized the prone form; the tall strong Wood Elf that had destroyed the Great Gate, saved Bruma and other Cryodillic cities, retrieved the Amulet of Kings and destroyed Mankar Camoran and his evil paradise. It was the Champion, and he was covered in blood.

Author's note; I had just beaten the game and the plot bunny bit me pretty hard as I watched the end (and checked my health meter…) so I sat down at the computer (so conveniently close to the TV) and wrote. I meant for this to be a one-shot but I think it's about to become a full-blown story. Enjoy! REVIEWS WELCOMED!!!!!

-Vanillathunder215


	2. Pain and Weakness

As soon as she was off-duty, Caroline went to go see the injured Bosmer. As she had thought, the others had put him in one of the rooms upstairs rather than on a bedroll on the floor. Jauffre was tending to him at the moment with no less than 3 Blades, including Baurus, standing vigil.

As she got closer, Jauffre peeled back the ruined leather of the Champion's armor. Caroline added her own hiss to that of the other's as they got a good look at the flesh beneath. For his part, the Wood Elf groaned a little and frowned in his fevered sleep, moving his head weakly from side to side. In his weakened condition, there was no need for anyone to hold him in place.

As more hideous wounds were discovered, 2 Blades actually left the room, leaving Caroline, Jauffre and a very shaken Baurus with the injured Elf. They could hear the coughing and sputtering, reflecting their own feelings. Suddenly, Caroline realized she didn't know his name. She had seen him escort Martin and Jauffre here when the whole mess started; seen him coming and going often, held vigil as he destroyed Camoran's Paradise and even spoke to him. But she never knew his name.

"He saved us all, you know." Jauffre was saying as he started to treat the infection on the Elf's chest. "He had the choice to walk away and I don't think he ever considered it."

"No, he didn't. He was a prisoner too, when I first met him. I have no idea why he was there to begin with though." Baurus said.

"It doesn't matter anymore. No one will remember that. By the God's he must have had these injuries since the battle in the Imperial City!"

"Why did he come all the back here like that? He could have easily stayed in the Imperial City or Chorrol, even Bruma. Why here?" Baurus asked.

"Only he can answer that, when he awakes. Maybe he felt like he needed to be back here especially since Martin is now gone. Maybe he feels responsible for it. Or maybe this is his only refuge, I can't say." Jauffre shook his head at the Elf's pitiful condition, "What I can say is that I'm surprised he made it all the way here on foot…and actually lived!"

"Bareck has never been known to give up. I don't think he would quit just now." Baurus said with a small smile.

Bareck. So now Caroline finally knew his name. She looked at the Elf again. He really was a handsome Wood Elf. He was unlike the other Wood Elves Caroline had seen before, infrequent as they were in Bruma. He had the short stature like every Bosmer but he didn't have any of the woodsy color that other Bosmer did. His hair was black as midnight and tied back into a short ponytail with a few loose strands sticking to his sweaty forehead. Though his eyes were closed now, she remembered looking into them when he had talked to her before. They were of the clearest blue that she had ever seen. Sweet and calm like a lake in summer but she had caught a glimpse of them when he was angry, harsher than the ice covered mountains in winter. His strong features were dark with pain and fever now but she knew what his face looked like when clear.

"The only thing working for him right now is his youth and strength. He is exhausted and this infection has wormed its way deep into his body." Jauffre said. He looked up at Caroline, "The nearest Mage's Guild is in Chorrol. He needs someone with far more experience than I in the restoration arts. Go get the head of the Guild there." Caroline saluted and ran from the room.

Baurus looked at the Bosmer, who was still rolling his head from side to side. He said something but Baurus couldn't make anything of it as it was in his own native tongue, something very few Redguards and Imperials knew.

In his burning fever dreams, Bareck found himself looking at every city in Cyrodiil. Each one was engulfed in flames and in ruins, just like Kavatch. The people were either dead or outside the remains of the city, lamenting their fate or cursing him. Because he had failed to save Martin and restore him to the throne. He groaned again. He wished he knew a spell powerful enough to send him back in time, to push Martin to go faster to the temple so he wouldn't have had to sacrifice himself. But he as more a warrior than a mage, and his power wasn't even strong enough to perform a simple soul trap spell. An annoyance that cost him a lot of money for recharging his many magical swords. But it had been worth it; those swords and daggers won him many fights easily, especially his new toy; a long sword he named Dragon Breath.

At the thought of a dragon he swore in his own tongue under his breath. Suddenly the pain flared up in his body, causing him to cry out and twist his body, trying to escape the pain. He fell to the ground and thrashed around but something held him down, refusing to let him up. The pain built up in him, the agony unbearable.

His eyes snapped open just as Jauffre put down the knife, finished with cutting away the rotting flesh. Baurus released the elf as he stopped moving and stepped back. Bareck felt the sweat running down his face, neck and chest from the whole ordeal, not all of it from his fever. He really didn't want to face anyone at the moment and quickly closed his eyes before they noticed he was awake. He would rather they kill him instead of help him, at least it would put out the deep burning shame inside of him.

As he fell asleep again he remembered the last conversation he had had with Martin before the battle for Bruma.

_He had walked into the great hall to find Martin in Tiber Septim's armor, arguing with Jauffre. Baurus stood behind them, looking annoyed and anxious. _

_"It's far too dangerous for you to go." Jauffre was saying but Martin would hear naught of it. He was going, no matter what. _

_Bareck agreed with Jauffre. All this hard work and he didn't want Martin to die as they neared the end. He stepped up to Martin as they walked outside and spoke as they went along._

_"Let me lead the soldiers to the Oblivion gates. Jauffre is right…it is far too dangerous."_

_"No. If I am to be emperor, it is time to start acting like one. No more hiding in Cloud Ruler Temple."_

_Bareck had sighed then, realizing the futileness of arguing with the stubborn man, "You are knocking a few hundred years of my life-span off, you know that?" he asked Martin, who laughed in reply._

_"You do that on your own. No other man or elf would even consider doing half of the things that you have done. There are probably countless other things that I don't even know about that would make others cringe. No, that honor is yours alone."_

_"It wasn't my idea to go into Sancer Tor or Miscancard. That was for you. The worst thing the Fighter's Guild ever asked me to do was trolls and goblins. You have sent me into headless zombies, ogres and undead skeletons guarding long dead ghosts of powerful kings."_

_"Then we split it. You still have the choice to turn away you know. After all you have done…it would only be fair."_

_"No…I don't quit. Besides, who else is crazy enough to go into the Great Gate but me?" _

They had been very lucky that day. They lost many of the best soldiers from Cyrodiil but Martin had survived and the Great Gate destroyed. Still, the rush had taken a toll on Bareck. His health had been heavily damaged by running insanely through Oblivion instead of taking his time like he was used to. He hadn't stopped at all and had barely taken a break between that, Camoran's Paradise and the Imperial City crisis. Maybe if he had slowed just a little, he would have had enough energy to save Martin. But it was too late now.

His mind was merciless as he slept on, trapped in his tormented dreams.


	3. On His Own

He slept for 4 days. He never woke up when a Chorrol mage treated him, or when there was uproar outside when a stray scamp somehow managed to get past the gates. He slept on, oblivious to the fact that all of Cyrodiil now knew of his plight and was anxiously holding their breath that he would live.

Finally, on the morning of the 5th day, he awakened. He sat up slowly, gingerly, for his side still ached despite the new flesh starting to cover the wound. He knew exactly where he was due to the smell in the room; the fresh clean scent of the mountain air and the stronger scent of leather and steel from Blade armor.

He was about to get up, but realized that his own armor and clothing had been stripped from his ravaged body and thought better of it. He would wait until he could get some clothes. Speaking of which… where was his armor? Surely it had fared better than he had in that last battle…

"Even the best armorer cursed and refused to repair your armor after what you did to it." Bareck nearly jumped out of his skin and looked over at Baurus standing in the doorway. Quickly recovering from the shock, he sighed and shook his head.

"Still like trying to scare me, eh, Baurus?"

"After what you put all of us through?" Baurus laughed, "Of course. Though you would be ahead on points now."

Bareck raised a narrow eyebrow at Baurus' last remark. Baurus had been only teasing him, but in Bareck's anguished mind, he took it literally. Baurus was too excited at seeing his friend awake that he failed to notice the darkness covering the wood elf's face.

"It seems that the Emperor's trust was well-placed in you." He said, echoing the same words Jauffre had spoken so long ago at Wynon Priory. Those words jerked at Bareck's mind.

"What makes you say that?" he asked, looking straight ahead.

"What makes me say that?!? Between you and Martin, you saved all of Cyrodiil, if not all of Tamriel! No one would be alive right now had not you saved us all!" Baurus couldn't believe his ears. Where was the wood elf that willingly ran off into just about every suicidal mission the world had to offer? Where was the courage that bordered on cockiness and the unfailing good nature? What had happened?

"We are still in danger aren't we?" Bareck responded coldly, "If not from Oblivion gates, then from each other as cities rip each other apart in a battle for an emperor. I've met and spoken to every count and countess in Cyrodiil, Baurus." Bareck looked into Baurus' eyes then, "There are only one or two that I can think of that wouldn't want to try and take over the empire for themselves. Chancellor Ocato hasn't got a chance. When the relief from the invasion is over, it will start again…from the inside. I only saved the empire for a short time, and then I destroy it again. Because Martin didn't survive, the world now has a death sentence."

Baurus couldn't respond to that. There had been whispers about that. People with more sense than others had already begun questioning the future of the empire without an heir to the throne. However, Baurus was certain of one thing.

"When Uriel Septim died that day, everyone was thinking the same thing. No one outside of you, me and Jauffre knew of Marin. The fear and the uncertainty were the same, though perhaps tainted with more fear because of the assassins. As I have said before; the Blades are not an arm of the government, we serve only the emperor. Whatever happens, happens. I can tell you this though; while some counts and countesses are power hungry and have their eye on the throne, many of their subjects won't like it. The citizens have proven that they can influence the soldiers. Enough influence and enough people can turn the tide of the war."

"For good or for bad I know…" Bareck interrupted. "But it still comes down to one thing… I failed to keep Martin alive. It was the last moment, the very last thing to do. If only we had been a little faster…"

"IF ONLY you had been a little faster, IF ONLY Mehrunes Dagon had been a little slower, IF ONLY your blade had been a little sharper or duller, IF ONLY…there are so many "if only" s we can do. If only I had done my job and kept Uriel Septim alive you would not have had to go on this hare-brained adventure and you would probably be in Valenwood right now."

Bareck was silent. "Probably not Valenwood." Then he didn't speak any more. Baurus shook his head and left the elf alone. Feeling a little defeated and upset, he sought out Jauffre and told him all that had transpired. Jauffre leaned back against the wall, feeling old all of the sudden.

"Of course, why hadn't I seen it before? He feels like he is responsible for Martin's demise, which, of course, he is not."

"So what do we do, Grandmaster?"

"Nothing. This is something he has to do on his own." Jauffre looked out to the Jerall Mountains, "Another thing; he will leave here. If not in a few days, then a few weeks, but he will end up leaving. Do not stop him or try to follow him."

Baurus didn't ask how or why. He knew the answer to both. Besides, Bareck was an experienced fighter and traveler…he didn't need anyone's help and he needed to come to terms with himself on his own, just like Baurus did over the Uriel's death.

xXxXxX

Just like Jauffre had predicted, Bareck did leave. One night, a week after he had woken up, he gathered all his gear and slid out the gates. He had become very good at sneaking and his dark clothing helped him blend with the shadows. He didn't go down the roads, not yet anyway.

He went west a little ways from Cloud Ruler Temple before going south to the Orange Road. He had no idea where exactly he was headed; he just let his feet take him where they would.

After walking for a few hours he thought he smelled smoke. He stopped and looked around. The wind shifted and his keen ears picked up the sounds of the gentle roar of a fire. Curious, he picked his way through the woods towards the source.

The remains of an Oblivion gate smoldered in the clearing. The trees around it were burned and blackened, as was the grass. There were no animals around, not even birds. It was as if they sensed the evil that had once existed here and stayed away, lest it return. Bareck never remembered seeing this gate, never mind closing it. He could only guess that they were all closed now, thanks to Martin. At the thought of his friend, Bareck's stomach clenched painfully. He turned abruptly and left the clearing.

Maybe he should go back to Valenwood. At least there, no one knew who he was or what he had done. He could blend in with his brethren and never be seen by a Cyrodiilian again. Live a normal eleven life and forget all about the Oblivion crisis.

Bareck knew he couldn't do that even as his mind entertained the idea. He would never forget what happened here. He would never forget the Blades, Jauffre, Baurus, all the friends and enemies he had made. Martin.

His stomach clenched again. No matter what anyone said, he had signed the country's death sentence when he failed to get Martin to the temple before Mehrunes Dagon came through the gate. All his fault.

He knew it was time to stop when his sides began to ache again. The sun was dipping low into the horizon, making the woodland flanked road dark. He stepped off the path and found an area he deemed secure to sleep. His body relaxed quickly, but his head and his heart were still heavy and troubled.


	4. Under Control

Bareck groaned. So maybe it wasn't the best idea in the world to go trekking off into the woods so soon after waking up. His whole body ached; something that he hadn't experienced since the beginning of his whole quest. He curled up and willed the dull aching pain in his body to go away. Some of the scars that barely covered his wounds had split and the fluid stained his clothes, adding to his misery.

Somehow he forced himself up and forward. Something inside of him told him that he wasn't at his destination yet, wherever that was. He silently praised himself for packing lightly for once. Usually he had carried an arsenal of weapons and a lot of armor, not to mention the variety of other knickknacks he frequently relied on in caves and dungeons like potions, scrolls, keys and many other things. He had limited himself to only 2 swords (both magical), his bow, 1 set of armor and a few potions. His recovering body couldn't put up with much more than that.

He didn't get nearly as far as he had the first day, but it was enough to get him almost to Weye. He looked up, as he had nearly 10,000 times during the day, at the palace. Its tall spire reached up into the sky as if to touch the heavens. Even as far away as he was, it was a very impressive thing.

He went down to the Rumare and settled down on the sandy beach, feeling the warm breeze against his body. He was grateful for the warmth; it had been far too cold up in Bruma. In fact, he couldn't remember _anytime_ where it was warm in Bruma, even by the slightest. One hand idly traced random patterns in the sand as he stared out over the water at the distant walls of the Imperial City. His mind raced through thoughts, never sticking to anything for long. He let it go. At least, while flicking through his thoughts and memories like that, he wouldn't have to think of the events that took place within the city before him.

The next morning he awoke with a start. He had drifted off into sleep sitting on the sand the night before without securing the area. Stupid! Now he had several mud crabs poking at him, ready to attack should he move. His sword was in his hand before he could clear the sleep from his mind and the crabs' blood stained the sand as he fully woke up. His pounding heart and intoxicating adrenaline kept him from feeling the protesting pain from his old wounds. Just as well. He gathered up his things and headed for Weye.

It was late morning by the time he got to the tiny settlement at the base of the Imperial Bridge. One inn and an old house were all that marked it as a settlement. If you wanted a cheap place to sleep without the city bustle around you, this inn was it.

Bareck wasn't planning on stopping, just going on straight to the city but as he passed a solitary old man by the road, a fisherman by his clothes, he heard a small sigh.

"Who would help an old man?"

Rarely did the wood elf consider himself a push-over, but he usually helped out people who needed it. With a small sigh himself, he stopped and approached the old man.

"Help with what?" He asked.

10 minutes later he found himself walking down to the lake to get the scales of 12 slaughter fish for the old man so he could sell them and retire. Slaughter fish. He had dealt with them a few times in the past and knew they were a nasty tempered fish. With still wet wounds, he would have no trouble finding them. He would have a little trouble killing them, however.

He stowed his small bag by a rock so no one would see it and stripped off his clothing. His armor, very strong against just about anything, was useless underwater. Since virtually no one was around, he didn't feel too bothered by leaving all his clothes on the shore.

Despite the warm day, his skin, which had been slowly exuding sweat, now shrank from the cold water. He shivered slightly but kept going. It hurt particularly when the cold hit some of his scars. Suddenly, he wished he was wearing some sort of clothing. Too bad he didn't have anything suitable.

As he had predicted, the fish were attracted to his wounds and after several exhausting fights, 12 of them lay on the sandy beach. After quickly looking around, Bareck rushed from the water and donned his armor again. Then, more slowly, he let the sun dry him off as he stripped the fish of their scales. The movement was familiar. He had done this countless times with more animals than he cared to remember. Scaling a fish defiantly was not one of the more enjoyable ones. It was worse than cutting off flesh.

Suddenly his knife hit the ground and he stared frozen, in shock, at the fish. As he had thought of cutting off flesh, he had moved his body just so that the scar where Jauffre had to cut the infected flesh off of him gave a twinge. The red mists of the fever dreams from the thought flooded his mind. Panic rose in his chest, threatening to overwhelm him. He suddenly scrambled backwards, stopping only because his back hit a rock. That rock was all the anchor he needed to bring him back to his senses. The red mist faded from his mind and he fought back the panic. He realized he was shaking, his teeth chattering. His stomach heaved as the smell of fish filled his sensitive nose and rolled over and threw up.

Bareck rolled the ring he had received from the old fisherman over in his fingers as he walked across the bridge. The old man didn't seem bothered that only half a fish had been scaled. He could probably do that better than Bareck ever could. He had enthusiastically shaken the Bosmer's hand, thanking as many times as he could, and had given him a ring that apparently could allow him to breath underwater. Not the Bareck was going to try it out right now. The old man either didn't notice or didn't care that the elf's face was an extremely unhealthy pallor and his hands were still shaking slightly. Most likely the foremost.

He got halfway across the bridge when he stopped. He had totally forgotten that people here knew him as the "Champion of Cyrodiil". If he went through the main gate, in the middle of the day, he could very well end up in a mob-like crowd. He decided to wait until the middle of the night and go in from the Arcane University to the Arboretum. Less people there and it was the fastest way to the Temple District.

He took his time walking around the city walls to the university. He had a long wait ahead of him and he felt no rush to get in anyway. He looked up and found that he was already at the Arcane University, even with short legs he got there all to fast. He climbed up the steep incline, grunting from the pain in his sides, and settled down in a niche in the wall by the gate. The guards by the gate couldn't see him, which suited him just fine. Exhausted, he fell asleep, his head pillowed on one knee propped up against the wall.

A deer pulling leaves from a nearby bush woke him up. The delicate doe watched him carefully before deciding he wasn't a threat and went back to eating. Bareck sat quietly, not wishing to disturb her. He still had a while before midnight and he suddenly felt really nervous. It had been nearly 3 weeks since that fateful day, 3 weeks of nightmares and panic attacks. He didn't know if he could do this. He felt his stomach knot again. The deer shot away in panic as Bareck barely rolled over in time, violently throwing up…again.

It took him nearly an hour to get his latest attack back under control. How on earth was he supposed to be able to go to the temple district and keep himself under control if a simple deer was enough to send him spiraling into the black void of fear? He did not want to fall apart in front of the city watch. Not only would that be incredibly embarrassing, it could be fatal. He spent the next few hours getting himself fully under control and steeling his nerves…and his stomach. When he felt it late enough, he put on his black cloak on with the hood over his face and went through the gate into the Imperial City.


	5. Not OK

It was really quiet in the Arboretum. There was only one other person there, the guard by the gate to the Temple District, so Bareck took his time and settled down to enjoy the his surroundings. Or tried to anyway. He was so nervous that he didn't really see the flowers and trees and buildings. To him they seemed twisted and scarred.

Angrily, he berated himself. Exactly what was there to be so nervous about? A temple with no roof and a giant statue of a dragon. It was, if anything, even better than every other chapel he had had to go into over the last several months. It defiantly was much better than the little church he had found out by the Reed River that was infested with Necromancers. So what was he going on about?

He was so preoccupied with what was going on in his own head that he wasn't paying attention to where he was going and nearly ran into the gate. The guard, who graciously never said a word, gave him a long look. Bareck turned his face away, muttered a feeble excuse, and pushed through the gate before the guard could get a good look at him.

As soon as he made it through the gate, the first thing his sharp eyes were drawn to was the magnificent dragon statue rearing up from the middle of the roofless temple. Its head was thrown back in a silent cry that Bareck could still hear echoing in his head. Wings spread for balance as it gave everything it had into destroying The Deadra prince. Bareck began to walk towards it. He didn't allow himself time to think over it, instead he walked right into the temple and closed the door before he lost his courage.

It was even more magnificent up close. Bareck stood for a long time, staring up at the statue, his mind mercifully silent, and his body numb. Slowly, he approached the towering dragon and touched it, his fingers running gently over the rough stone. Then he felt it.

The shock of a spell running through his body startled him, but he couldn't remove his hand from the dragon. He gritted his teeth as a blue light surrounded him. Then the force of the spell completely integrating itself in his body knocked him backwards and onto the floor.

The last wisps of the spell swirled around him in a light blue mist as he re-oriented himself. Then the realization hit him like a ton of bricks; the dragon had put a spell on him! Far from making him feel the closure he had sought, he suddenly turned and fled.

He ran as fast as he could back through the Temple District and the Arboretum. He heard guards calling after him and he realized he must seem like a thief fleeing the scene. He couldn't stop, not right now. He needed to get away.

He burst through the gate out of the city, across the bridge, through Weye and out into the wilderness beyond.

XxXxXx

As the only female Imperial Legion Soldier, Keyarrion got her fair share of teasing and insults. She had been part of the watch for a few years, putting up with the other male watchman teasing her and male citizens harassing her. Even some of the women in town didn't appreciate her. But Keyarrion was strong. She had some Breton blood in her, courtesy of her grandmother, which made her strong, and a lot of Imperial blood, which made her stubborn. Tall and powerful, offset by her long, braided, purple-pink hair and feline blue eyes, Keyarrion was undoubtedly one of the strongest women in the Imperial City, if not most of Cyrodiil.

But she had gotten fed up with the insults and the cat calls. She applied for being a patrol out on the roads. There, she only had to put up the occasional discourteous merchant. As for the other Legion Soldiers out on the road, she rarely saw them and had even less to say to them when they did meet. They would come to her aid, should she need it, but other than that, it was just her and her bay horse.

It was a good horse, Mina was. She never failed to alert Keyarrion to anyone or anything approaching. She always helped fight the creatures that attacked them and stood still when Keyarrion talked to someone. They ate, slept and patrolled together. She was Keyarrion's first and best friend.

It was Mina who alerted her, as usual, to something in the woods that day, not far from the Imperial City. She stopped and snorted, her small ears perked forward and her noble head turned towards a clump of trees. Keyarrion dismounted, but didn't draw her sword. Mina wasn't indicating that it was a beast, so she wasn't overly alarmed. Carefully she walked over to the trees and began to look around, trying to find what had made Mina upset. Then she saw it. Her blue eyes widened in surprise, and then she called Mina over and began to work.

XxXxXx

For 2 full days he slept. Keyarrion had coughed up 20 gold for the two of them the first day and when he didn't wake up, another 20. She was getting really nervous because she didn't have anymore gold. She was too far from the city to take him back there, had no idea, or gold, for a healer and had no intention of leaving him.

She spent most of her time in the room with her charge, trying to figure out what to do. She couldn't figure out what was wrong with the Bosmer. He had no obvious injuries, except the mostly healed ones on his torso, and no fever.

She looked over at the elf again. She had rarely ever been involved with a man, and never with one that wasn't human. There was something about this elf that struck her. He just seemed different. It was largely this feeling that kept her with him instead of leaving him at the inn. Besides, where was the honor in that? She would just have to wait until he woke up.

XxXxXx

Bareck knew, before he opened his eyes, that he was somewhere other than where he had fallen. He couldn't hear the sounds of the forest around him and the air was too still. Also, he was lying on something soft, presumably a bed. He opened his eyes.

He was right. It was a just like Cloud Ruler Temple all over again but instead of a Blade, he had a female Legion Soldier watching him. His eyes were first drawn to her bright colored hair. He had seen other Bosmer and Dunmer, even some Altmer, with some weird hair, but hers was a first. Then he looked at her face. An Imperial or Breton, strong and firm, like she was always ready for a fight. As a Legion Soldier, she had better be Bareck thought.

"Finally you woke up. I was starting to get a little worried." She smiled, her face suddenly extraordinarily pretty, "Also, I was starting to run out of gold."

Wordlessly Bareck motioned towards his bag, which Keyarrion retrieved, and pulled out his pouch. He extracted a generous 50 gold and passed it to her.

"Reimburse and something extra for you. What's your name?"

"Keyarrion." She stared in dumb shock at the gold. She had never held this much money in her hands before, "I found you in the woods, well, my horse did actually."

"Keyarrion…that's not Imperial is it?"

"No. It's my grandmother's name; she's a Breton. How did you get in the woods like that?"

"Yet your face is Imperial and you work as an Imperial Soldier. You're the first female soldier I have met in the Imperial City. In other towns, yes. Not here."

"It has its down-side, I assure you. Once again, what happened to you? What's your name?"

Bareck was quiet a moment. She was a stubborn one and he couldn't seem to throw her off-track. Yet she didn't seem to recognize him. He didn't feel like telling exactly what had happened. A shortened version would suffice.

"My name is Bareck. I was coming from the Imperial City. I…I don't remember exactly what happened." That at least was partly true, "I was running from something and just fell down where you found me. You can fill in the rest."

"What were you doing in the city?"

"Very curious, aren't you? Or am I being officially questioned?"

"It's my job to ask questions, Bosmer."

"It was nothing that would spark your interest."

They both fell silent for a while, which Bareck was thankful for. A massive headache was pounding inside his skull. He honestly couldn't remember what had happened. He thought he remembered feeling woozy, but couldn't say for sure. He just remembered blackness swallowing him.

"Hey, Bareck?" Keyarrion asked, seeing at his face suddenly going pale, "Hey, are you ok?"

Something was defiantly not ok.

Author's note: Hey, sorry for leaving this off at a weird spot!! First off, thank you to all who posted reviews and to Voration for a really cool idea!! I'll try to get some more updates soon!

-Vanillathunder215


	6. Living Nightmare

Sunlight flitted through the trees like small diamonds on dark green velvet. Birds chirped cheerfully and the wind gently rustled the leaves of the trees, as if to add to the bird's music. Yet the floor of the woods remained sheltered from the sun and wind. The giant trees protected it, making it still and dark. Some found this quiet darkness unnerving, yet to Bareck, it was home.

The dim quiet wrapped around him, making him feel secure and comforted. He had no fear of the woods, no matter how dark. He walked through the huge powerful trees, feeling slightly humbled by the giants who were far older than he would ever be in his elven lifetime. His footsteps were muffled by the thick carpet of old leaves and pine needles, making him a virtual shadow. He breathed deep, his lungs filling with the heavy scent of the forest. This was home.

But as he reveled in the prospect of being home, being safe and not needed for once, he felt something was wrong. That a streak of something dark and evil had tainted the pristine forest. He stopped and looked up, his hand resting gently on the trunk of an oak tree as if to draw strength and courage from it.

At first he thought he was looking at an Oblivion gate but there were no flames coming from it, no deadric creatures rushing out to attack him. It was a gate, that much Bareck was sure of, but it was unlike any gate he had ever seen before. It had no doors or bars, just an opening into a deep black void. The gate itself was just the same as the nightmare it opened up to; a black hole. No light touched it. It seemed that everything around it leaned away, trying to escape the evil that lived inside. Even the light seemed to run from it.

Bareck wanted to run too. He did not want to remain near this thing any longer. He tried to turn to leave but his feet were stuck fast. Looking down he realized that the trees had been tainted by the evil of the Black Gate; the roots had wrapped around his feet, holding him firmly in place. He tried to tug his feet free but the more he pulled, the tighter the roots held on. As he futilely tried to escape, it came.

From the black nothing, a creature as black as the void itself began to emerge. It didn't come fully out of the gate; just enough for Bareck to notice it there and for it to watch the elf struggle. It laughed; something so unnerving that it paralyzed Bareck. He felt the all-too-familiar panic rise in his chest, blinding him. The only that he could see was the creature's eyes watching him.

"You are mine…"

"NO!"

"Bareck!"

Bareck's eyes snapped open and he sat up quickly, his body shaking and covered in a cold sweat. It took him a moment to get himself oriented and to realize that he was still in the inn.

"You are really beginning to scare me, you know that Bareck?"

He turned to look at Keyarrion. It was she that had called out his name, pulling him away from that black creature, away from the Black Gate. It was she who had saved him.

"I'm starting to scare myself." He muttered.

"Where did that come from?" She asked suddenly, pointing to a peculiar knife wound on his side.

It had been there with the other wounds since the final battle in the Imperial City. It was the one that had festered the worst and had taken the longest to heal. In fact, it still hadn't healed fully and looked as if it had cracked open again. It was different than the other wounds. Instead of being a normal knife cut of scrape, it was shaped like a "V". Small wonder it had caught Keyarrion's interest while she had watched him thrash around in his fevered nightmare. No weapon that she had ever seen or heard of was that shape.

Bareck had no idea where it had come from. He hadn't really inspected his wounds that much. He didn't like to see them and, even when changing the bandage on them, avoided looking at them. He hadn't seen the odd shaped wound, even though it was the one that hurt the most.

"I…I don't know. I never really looked before." He admitted. Looking at it now, it scared him. It scared him badly.

"I'm thinking that maybe you were poisoned, or caught something from it…?"

"I'm a wood elf. I don't "catch" a disease that easily." He said stiffly. The fact the she would even bring that up was an insult. If anything, he prided himself on his natural ability to resist diseases. Only the very old elves had a chance of becoming diseased. He was still young…for an elf.

"Then you were poisoned. Either way, something is not right with that wound."

"What makes you say that?"

"When you were thrashing around, I happened to catch a glimpse of it. The only reason why I did was because it was glowing a weird black color. A first I thought it had festered but then it seemed to suck all the surrounding light away from it. That was when you began to panic."

Bareck nearly swallowed his tongue when he heard that. His dream, the odd wound, what he was going through…was it all connected?

"Hey look. I said I would help. I think I saw a book downstairs that is about weapons. I'll be right back."

Keyarrion left the room quickly, not that Bareck could blame her. After all, who would want to be in a room with an elf that was either going crazy or poisoned to insanity?

He reached over to his bag and pulled out a necklace. A small pendant shaped like a dragon hung on a silver chain. He had found it among the wreckage of the Temple not that long after Martin disappeared. It was probably some poor person's necklace that had dropped off their neck while fleeing the Deadra invasion but Bareck liked to think that it was a miniature of the giant Dragon that now stood in the Temple of the One. He held it in his palm, absently rubbing it gently with his thumb. The action helped calm him down and relax him.

Keyarrion burst back in, breathlessly holding up a massive leather book titled "Magical Bloodshed".

"I've heard of this book only a few times but never saw it." She said proudly, running her hand reverently over the worn leather cover, "It's all about magical weapons, real or fabled, and what they do. The sword or dagger that made your wound is bound to be in here somewhere."

Bareck didn't say a word and remained silent, still rubbing the dragon pendant, the entire time Keyarrion searched through the book. She mumbled to herself as she went along, running her finger along the page, occasionally squinting at Bareck's wound. He turned so she could get a better view of it, but still remained silent.

"I knew I would find it in here! That would was caused by a Black Sword. While an extremely rare sword here in our world, it is commonly seen in the Black Woods."

"Black Woods?"

"Are you telling me that a wood elf hasn't heard of the Black Woods?" Keyarrion asked incredulously. "The Black Woods are akin to Oblivion in a ways but it exists in our world. The Black Woods are sealed by a gate called Black Gate, predictably enough, and is inhabited by creatures exiled from both our world and Oblivion. Their swords are always heavily poisoned and there is only one antidote. This is where it gets complicated."

Bareck bit back the retort that sprang to his tongue. An evil forest guarded by a Black Gate filled with creatures that even Oblivion didn't want wasn't complicated enough?

"Only one known creature has ever made an antidote to this poison. It's an ancient Kahjiit called Re-Asker. She lives in the farthest Northeastern part of Cyrodiil, in the Jerall Mountains, right on the border of Skyrim."

"Long hard journey then. What happens if I don't get the antidote?" Bareck broke his silence.

"Well, it says here that you will either become one of the creatures of the Black Woods, or you will die a very unpleasant death." Keyarrion looked up at him with sympathy in her eyes.

Bareck looked away, annoyed. He didn't want sympathy or sorrow; he had enough of that for himself. He wanted action; he wanted to get moving now!

He got up a little shakily and began to pull on his armor and gather up his things. He knew that if he waited any longer he might be too late. He was lucky to be alive enough now.

Luck. He hesitated for a split second. Now he knew why he was alive. The dragon had given him luck. The spell that had coursed through his body; it was luck, maybe even something else.

"What are you doing?"

"Best get going now. It's a long journey and a hard one at that. I'm not going to sit around and then die on the way there." He said without looking at Keyarrion. She hesitated for a second, and then grabbed her stuff as well.

"Fine. I'm coming too, by the way. I said I would help." Bareck didn't say anything, didn't try to talk her out of it. When Keyarrion looked over at him, she could see one side of his mouth twitch as he tried to keep the smile from spreading over his face. She knew he was pleased to hear that.

XxXxXx

Mina tossed her head and snorted. It had been 3 days, 3 DAYS, since she had been out of the stable. She was irritable and antsy, ready to be off and not willing to wait. Keyarrion was not in the mood to put up with the mare's fit but Bareck went straight up to the bay and began to talk to her in his native tongue.

The effect was instantaneous. Mina quieted down and stood still. Keyarrion shook her head, took Mina's lead and they set out on the road towards Bruma.

Bareck was still feeling a bit shaky but he tried to hide it. The only indication he gave was a hand on Mina's strong flank every now and then for balance as he walked along. Keyarrion, walking on the other side of the powerful horse, kept an eye on the elf while keeping the other eye on the road ahead. Something told her that this journey was not going to be easy.

Concentrated as they were on the road ahead, no one, not even the ever vigilant Mina, sensed the dark shadow following them.

Author's note: Hey guys, sorry it took me a while to get this up. Well, I've turned away from the main game and have gone off into the realms of my own imagination, so it's about to get very interesting for those 3. But enjoy the chapter and let me know what yall think!

-vanillathunder215

(p.s.) hope everyone enjoyed the last HP!!


	7. Blood and Shadows

The journey along the Red Ring Road was rather uneventful. They ran into the occasional bandit or beast, but it was little more than a practice session for the two warriors. Even Bareck in his unstable condition had very little trouble over-powering a bandit.

The terrain became hillier as they approached the Silver Road that led towards Bruma. They had agreed to stop in the city to re-stock their meager supplies and rest a little before trying to go across the formidable Jerall Mountains.

They passed various ruins and tiny villages, Bareck always stopping whenever someone even whispered for help. This annoyed Keyarrion very much. In her opinion, these people should either help themselves or their village should help them. Why needlessly stop a traveler? It got to her so badly that she finally confronted Bareck about it after he helped a little old Imperial woman get rid of a troublesome wolf that was attacking her sheep.

"If no one would stop to help an old lady with a wolf problem, then do you think that someone would help an empire stop a deadric invasion?" Bareck asked patiently. Keyarrion fell silent.

Bareck was feeling particularly tired after wrestling with the wolf, unusually large even for a Timber Wolf, that he failed to notice the huge shadow rising into the air behind him. Keyarrion was staring at the ground, deep in thought. She didn't notice it either.

It was Mina. As brave and stalwart as she was, she was still a prey animal and every instinct in her body kept her alert at all times. It was her warning that saved their lives.

She reared up in the air, hoofs flailing and screaming out a battle cry. Her feet hit the flying creature, knocking it off balance, but it still managed to reach it target.

Its claws raked Bareck's back before he had a chance to pull his defenses together, knocking him to the ground. Mina had at least been able to deflect the killing blow. Unable to fight back at a flying creature, Mina ran around in circles, trying to protect Bareck and Keyarrion.

Keyarrion drew her sword and watched as the creature circled back, reading itself for another attack. It flew straight at her then banked at the last minute and sank its claws into Bareck again just as the elf was getting to his feet. He screamed with pain as the claws sank deep into the flesh of his back, ripping muscles and cracking a few ribs.

Keyarrion was almost afraid of striking at the monster for fear of hitting its target. Once again, Mina saved them. She grabbed the monster in her teeth and tossed her head. The shock of teeth in its neck made the creature let go with a screech but it buffeted Mina in the face with a heavy black wing, making the brave mare squeal and back away. The monster quickly turned its attention back to the moaning elf and sank one foot in this time, near the base of his neck.

This time Bareck couldn't scream. His neck was being squeezed, cutting off air. He realized that Keyarrion couldn't strike at the monster while it was on top of him. He closed his eye and tried to concentrate. Heat rushed from his chest to his hands, engulfing them in flames. Quickly he reached up and grabbed blindly at the monster. He heard a shriek and felt the pressure lift from his neck. He smelled something burning, saw the smoke from the monster as it fell to his powerful flame spell and fell dead to the ground.

He clamped a hand to his neck, feeling the hot blood gush over his fingers. He was used to blood and gore, but never could he get over the feel of his own blood. Now it was pouring over his neck and hand, creating a hot red pool on the road.

"Come on, get up. I can't carry you by myself. Come on, you can do it." Keyarrion's voice came from far away. "Bareck, come on. Move your legs. That's right, now come on…we're not going that far."

He could feel the black nothing of the Black Gate calling to him, pulling his mind, trying to suck him in. He pulled back but it insisted. It would lead him into a cold nothingness where he would feel no pain, none at all. It seemed a good thing…just to succumb to the painless nothing.

"Bareck! _Don't let it drag you under_!" Keyarrion screamed.

He jerked, instantly the Black Gate faded from his mind. He saw the trees, ordinary trees that were a part of the Great Forest. No evil giants here.

"Hang on, Bareck, just a minute," Keyarrion begged him. She pulled out a spare shirt and ripped it into rags, pressing it onto the gaping wound on his neck. She persisted as he pulled away, unwilling to have the pressure on his neck. Soon he became to belligerent for her to hold the compress on any longer. She looked back at the still smoldering monster. An idea quickly formed in her mind.

"Bareck, I need you to hold still, ok? Can you hear me? Hold still."

Before Bareck could wonder over her words, she brought the flat of the red hot knife down on the wound. The flesh sizzled and popped, blood evaporated as the heat of the blade seared into his skin. Bareck screamed louder than when the monster had attacked him. After a moment, Keyarrion removed the blade, now glowing a dull red and dropped in into a small bed of sand where it wouldn't cause any harm.

Bareck's feet still kicked spastically at the ground from the excruciating pain in his neck. He reached up instinctively to his neck but quickly pulled away at the new rush of pain.

"Just kill me already!" He shouted in his own tongue.

Keyarrion, of course, couldn't understand what he was saying, which was just as well as he continued to rant on, saying words she would have defiantly not liked. After a while he quieted down, the pain slowly receding, and Keyarrion was able to help him turn over so she could clean the cuts on his back. They weren't as deep or as serious as the one on his neck, but it wouldn't help for him to get an infection from a dirty wound.

When she finished at last and sat back on her heels, she noticed that Bareck had fallen asleep. She realized that she was just as exhausted as he was. Mina was grazing serenely nearby, her work was done but she was still on high alert, ever vigilant.

Feeling comforted by the mare's presence, she lay down next to Bareck and quickly fell asleep.

XxXxXx

Sunlight teased Bareck's face as it peeked out from behind the clouds before running back behind them again. His eyelids twitched before he slowly dragged them open. It was morning, late morning. He could tell by the smell of the air and by the light, even if the sun was playing games. He had been asleep all yesterday afternoon and all night.

Remembering yesterday's events, he reached up and lightly fingered the puckered scar on his neck. So he hadn't dreamed it all after all. He was still sane. Then he looked to see what he was lying against. His cheeks burned with sudden realization.

Sometime during the night, Keyarrion had taken off her steel armor and pushed her bag up against the tree so she could recline against it comfortably. She had then pulled the sleeping wood elf up next to her, resting his head on her breast and pulled a blanket over the two of them. He was still in that position, his head on her breasts. His heart beat faster and something in his stomach burned. Injured and sick as he was, he was still a male and she was still a female, race not with-standing. Not only that, he was wearing only his dark pants and she just in her underclothes.

He tried to push off of her but the strength wasn't there and he fell back against her, waking her. She never said anything about their odd position, which surprised Bareck, nor did she mention anything about yesterday. They didn't need to. The look that passed between them was enough.

They made painfully slow progress that day. Bareck held on to Mina's mane as they limbed up the increasingly steeper hills. The cuts on his back pulled but they weren't painful. His neck was another story. He could turn his head without feeling as if someone had stabbed him in the neck. His strength had not completely returned from the massive blood loss. They barely covered 4 miles that day. When Keyarrion decided to stop, Bareck practically fell where he was standing, too exhausted to go any further.

A cold breeze from the north blew that night. Never the one partial to old, Bareck began to shiver. His teeth chattered lightly as he curled up, but he could not get warm. Suddenly there was a warm back against his. He rolled slightly, unable to turn his head, and caught a glimpse of purple hair. He smiled to himself, forced the burn in his belly down, and fell asleep that way, back to back with Keyarrion, sharing warmth, with Mina standing over them like a mother hen standing over her chicks.

Author's note; and they think that a giant bat from hell is the biggest danger ahead…ha!

-Vanillathunder215


	8. The Beginning of Darkness

The rest of the way to Bruma was spent in quiet tension. A thick mist had blown in one night and stubbornly stayed. At first it was a relief to have some sense of cover as the forest was thinning with every mile they walked. But it was too good to be true.

Now they couldn't see the monsters that tracked them. They could hear them, hear the footsteps and the flutter of wings, see a glimpse of a dark shadow or a swirl of mist, but never could they be sure exactly where the monsters were.

Bareck, stiff and sore, suffered the worst. He had been born and raised in the more reasonable temperatures of Valenwood and had spent the last several years in southern Cyrodiil. Granted he had spent a little while up in the northern territories, but he was still very unused to the cold. He kept close to Mina, sharing the big mare's body heat. He was feeling far from happy about the monsters in the mist, but he could feel the slightest longing to join them every once in a while. He never mentioned that to Keyarrion. Nor did he mention the dreams of getting closer to the Black Gate.

Keyarrion went along as she normally would. Her Breton ancestry gave her superb protection against the cold and she was feeling strangely confident after that first defeat against the creatures. Bareck was up and moving, none worse for the wear, and they were almost half way there. They had a chance.

As soon as the walls to Bruma loomed up out of the mist, the creatures disappeared. The tension around the trio immediately dissipated, though Bareck felt a slight twinge of regret.

As they walked through the gate and into the city, Bareck reached up and felt the cauterized wound on his neck. Strangely, the wound seemed to have already closed, leaving behind a small scar. Shocked, Bareck pulled his hand away and carefully breathed warm air onto his hand, thinking it was too numb with cold to feel properly. Even then, it was the same. He couldn't avoid the truth; he had healed quickly, far too quickly for any creature without magical aid.

He stayed in a disturbed silence the whole way to the inn, letting Keyarrion fill in the silence with idle chatter, all the way into their spacious room.

Keyarrion didn't stay long. The female legionnaire immediately set off in search of more supplies, leaving Bareck alone. As soon as her footsteps faded, he yanked off his shirt and examined his shoulder in the mirror over the dresser.

Like his neck, it too had healed completely, leaving only a slight stiffness behind, his back as well. Only thin pinkish scars ran up his back to show where the claws had raked the flesh.

He turned back around and nearly yelped when he saw his front. All his old scars that had already faded, some 50, 60 or so years old, were resurfacing. Here and there pink and white scars zigzagged over his body. The one he had gotten as a child on his cheekbone appeared. One right above his navel where a not-so-friendly acquaintance had tried to gut him, and countless others. Now he was feeling very worried.

XxXxXx

Keyarrion walked slowly down the snow packed streets, taking the time to admire the city. She hoisted her new silver long sword up a little further on her hips and settled it comfortably. Hopefully it would prove more effective than her old steel one. Hopefully, she wouldn't need it at all but that was wishing for too much.

She was going slowly for more reasons than just sightseeing. She had noticed a change in Bareck. He was more withdrawn than usual and completely silent. She knew he was used to traveling alone but he would start a conversation every now and then. Not now.

Also she saw how every time they saw or heard signs of the monsters, he would seem anxious, his eyes picking objects out of the mists, as if hoping to see one. Then he would seem horrified with himself and sink even deeper within himself.

She stopped in front of a building with ornate double doors. She mentally degraded herself for not having thought of the mage's guild sooner.

XxXxXx

Bareck was trying to get some sleep. He knew that he would need all the sleep he could get before they set out on the most arduous leg of the journey. He wanted to be able to get to this Kahjiit healer as quickly as possible.

He turned onto his side, trying to get comfortable, then onto his belly. Feeling frustrated for no apparent reason he got up and began to pace around. He felt like a trapped wild animal in the Arena; he knew that something was going to come, but he had no way of getting away. He wanted to be out of here, out of this room, out of the city, running free through the snow covered mountains to the warm forest in the south.

Knowing he couldn't do that just served to fuel his frustrations. He began to breathe harder, his pupils dilated. He clenched his hands into fists until blood seeped from between his fingers. Pain roared from the core of his body, spreading to his limbs.

He fell to his knees in the middle of the room, his fists to his pounding head. The sweat of pain dripped off his face and ran down his neck, soaking his drenched shirt. He tasted the coppery tang of blood from where he had bitten his lip, but he didn't dare let go because a scream lay right behind his tongue and he didn't want anyone near him right now.

Red mists that he had once associated with the fevered dreams of Martin swirled behind his closed eyes again. This time, however, they turned black and took him to the Black Woods again. The demonic creature that he had seen, the one that had been watching him all this time, came again. He saw it completely this time. In his horror, he couldn't tear his eyes away.

Mehrunes Dagon couldn't even compare to this beast. It was shaped something like a wolf; four legs, a canine-ish head and a long tail, but there the resemblance ended. It was completely black, blacker, if that was possible, than the gate behind it, except for those eyes; piercing red eyes many Dunmer warriors would have been jealous of, except that they, too, would have run from these eyes. Bareck couldn't tell if it had skin, fur or scales or all of them. It could even be made simply of the shadows that surrounded it, compressed into its shape. To top it off, a long tail curled around its feet, the tip twitching as it anticipated its prey. It opened its mouth…

Bareck fell to his back as he was released from the Dark Guardian's grip. Dark Guardian… he had no idea where the name came from. It just popped into his head, but it seemed a fitting name to the creature.

He was exhausted and couldn't find the energy to push himself up and over to the bed a few feet away. He sank down all the way onto the floor and fell into a deep sleep in a pool of his own sweat.

XxXxXx

Keyarrion twisted her jaw as she walked briskly back to the inn. She had spent nearly an hour arguing with the mage's in the guild over the Black Woods, the Kahjiit healer, the weather, elves and generally everything. She was almost ready to breathe fire when she felt something drop into her bag and pull her gently towards the door. Turning slightly she didn't see anything but she heard a slight snicker that sounded a lot like a young Kahjiit. She muttered a thanks and left without another word.

As she walked she pulled the object out of her bag. It was a book, a thick black leather bound book stamped in gold across the top, "Forest of Shadow". It sounded promising and she went faster.

She literally ran up the stairs of the inn and to their room. However, she stopped abruptly with her hand almost on the door knob. Something was screaming at her that something was wrong. Something had happened while she was gone and it wasn't at all good.

Slowly, cautiously, she opened the door and stepped in. She saw Bareck sprawled in the middle of the floor, apparently unconscious. She could quickly and easily see that there was nothing else in the room so she went to Bareck and gently shook him.

She received her first shock when he opened his eyes. Normally his eyes were a clear blue but something marred the color. They seemed blurred, like a shadow was covering them. He sat up easily, no obvious signs of another "episode" or injury that she could see. Then she saw his neck wound, or lack thereof.

Bareck was still being silent but Keyarrion didn't need to hear him speak to understand what was happening; he was being sucked into the world of Black Woods.

XxXxXx

When Bareck had fallen asleep again, on the bed this time, Keyarrion began to flip though the book she had gotten from the Mage's Guild. She flipped past the pages on the creatures themselves, their attacks and weapons. That she already knew. She wanted to know what happened to their victims. Finally she found a likely looking page;

_After being wounded by a blade or weapon of the Black Woods, one has few choices. There are very few alchemists that are skilled enough to make the Elixir of Light to save the inflicted one from death or worse._

_Many give in to the poison on the blade and become one of the shadow creatures themselves, though not humanoid. They become like the creatures that inhabit the planes of Oblivion; the deadra are the masters and the "changelings", as they are called, become their toys._

_When the inflicted one starts to become a "changeling" it happens very slowly and very painfully. They will not know what is wrong with them until it is too late. They will see the Dark Guardian and long for him. They will see the gate itself and long for it. The creatures will follow the inflicted one throughout his change and he will long to follow._

_He will start to become one of them and call out to them, but will not try to join them until the end, when he is one of them._

_They are more than Deadra. They do not fear death, for they are already dead. They do not fear fear itself, for they are it. They do not fear the darkness or despair, for that is their world and they relish it. All tremble before the Shadow._

Keyarrion slowly closed the book. She looked over at the Bosmer who was still stretched out in sleep. She was suddenly over-whelmed by the sheer magnitude of the consequences of this journey. If they failed, Bareck would face a worse fate than death.

Keyarrion didn't know how long he had before he would finish his transformation. What if he finished before they could reach the Kahjiit? Keyarrion was strong but one simple shadow creature had been more than a match for her, Bareck and Mina. Let alone the fact that the creature was preoccupied trying to eat Bareck. Should Bareck turn on her, he could easily over-power her and Mina. And there would be no one else around to help her.

She sat still, wondering what to do, when she heard the door start to rattle. The hair on the back of her neck stood up and she jumped up and picked up her silver long sword. She held it at the ready and crouched down. Whoever was trying to break into their room would not make it past the threshold.

Slowly the door opened.

XxXxXx

Author's note; don't you just love the cheesy cliffhangers?

-Vanillathunder215

(I really don't like Imperial Watch soldiers anymore…)


	9. The Breaking Point

Baurus had always hoped that Bareck would one day come back. They had shared something the day Emperor Uriel had been assassinated, something that neither male could explain but knew that it existed. It had forged a deep friendship between them where, at first, had been mistrust and suspicion.

Guilt and pain had haunted Baurus after Bareck had left. It was more than just the feeling of losing a friend; Bareck was the only link he had left to Uriel Septim and Martin. That link gone, Baurus felt like a ship whose mooring had been cut and was drifting out of control to sea.

Other Blades seemed to feel the same way. It was quieter around Cloud Ruler Temple, but a somber silence. There wasn't much laughter anymore and it was they could do to get through each round of patrols. Even the weather the past few weeks seemed to have reflected their moods; the sky was a constant slate gray and a cold miserable fog wrapped its arms around them.

Only Jauffre seemed unaffected. Locked away in one of the rooms upstairs in the West Wing, he poured over an object that an Imperial Legion Soldier had brought some days ago. He shooed away any curious Blade who tried to ask questions about the object. While nearly desperate with curiosity and filled with the longing for a distraction, Baurus knew better than to push Jauffre. He would get answers soon enough, he just needed to be patient.

His patience was finally rewarded one day when Jauffre called him up to the room. He tried not to show his eagerness or curiosity as he walked into the room and stood at attention before his Grandmaster, but he did let his eyes wander to the table a bit.

He was a little surprised to see only a simple blade lying on the table. His imagination and curiosity had created some rare magical treasure at the very least. This blade didn't seem much compared to the grandeur his mind had conjured, but he knew better than to comment on it.

"Ah yes, Baurus." Jauffre greeted him, "I see you've noticed the object of my studies these past few days."

It never ceased to amaze Baurus how this old monk could always tell what they were doing or thinking. But, of course, he wasn't grandmaster for nothing.

"The Imperial Soldier brought this blade to us some time ago, as I'm sure you are aware of. He found it in the Temple District of the Imperial City, next to the carcass of a peculiar creature. It wasn't a Deadra, but it wasn't on our side either." Jauffre indicated the blade on the table, "Some of the other Imperial Soldiers think they recall this creature stabbing Bareck with this blade. They had no idea what sort of monster it was but before they could look closer, it disintegrated. They brought the blade to me, as the Mage's Guild couldn't be bothered right now, in hopes that I could discover who wielded it and what might have affected Bareck."

"Did you discover that or am I here to go find some clue?"

"No, you are going to go see if I was right. Even though it doesn't look like much, this blade is very dangerous. I will tell you, I hope I'm not right, for once. If I am, we might have a bigger problem than Deadra on our hands."

XxXxXx

The door creaked open slowly, almost as cautiously as Keyarrion had opened it just moments earlier. She didn't give the intruder time to think or react. As soon as the door opened wide enough, she leaped forward, whipping her sword forward and pressing it against the intruder's neck.

The intruder was just as fast she was and had been expecting some sort of defense. He had his own blade to her neck just as her's stopped at his.

"I don't think you want this to go this way…" A deep voice said gently, calmly despite the sharp blade at his neck.

"It will if you don't leave." Keyarrion growled.

"Stand down Imperial. In case you haven't noticed yet, I'm not in league to kill you. Besides, I'm not even here for you." The intruder said, a little peevishly now, and stepped a little out of the shadows, away from Keyarrion's blade. A male Redguard in Blades armor appeared before her and lowered his Katina. He considered her a moment with dark eyes before casting a quick look to the still sleeping Bosmer. Somehow, Bareck was still asleep despite all the racket.

"Who are you?" Keyarrion asked, noticing the source of his attention and wanting to draw it away. She spoke loud enough in hopes of waking her companion to alert him to the danger. Baurus sighed, seeing her tactic and found it wise to explain who he was and why he had come.

"It wasn't too difficult to find Bareck, actually." The Redguard explained, "When the "Hero of Bruma" shows up, people tend to start talking. I just followed the whispers here."

By now, both had put up their swords and shared the details of both their stories in a more relaxed manner. However, both knew that the swords could easily appear in their owners hand faster than a heartbeat if needed. For now, however, there would be peace.

While the noises from earlier hadn't pierced through Bareck's sleepy unconsciousness, the low murmur of voices did. He carefully slit one eye open and looked around, focusing on the two shapes to his left. He slit the other eye open as well to get a better look. He recognized Keyarrion quickly and it took him only a second more to recognize Baurus. What was he doing here? He closed his eyes again. Nothing was making any sense and his headache was building again.

Keyarrion and Baurus had started to argue over something. They started quietly at first, but as they got heated, their voices rose, grating on the Bosmer's already fayed nerves. He opened his eyes all the way, squinting slightly in the light, and slowly sat up. Neither Keyarrion nor Baurus noticed him, but kept on the argument. Bareck let it go for a few more minutes until his patience and nerves totally wore out.

"ENOUGH!" He screamed, jumping between them. Though tall for a wood elf, he wasn't as tall as the Imperial or the Redguard but he caught their attention.

They jumped slightly when Bareck came between them and quickly let off their fighting. For a moment everything was quiet save for the sound of harsh breathing. Then Bareck straightened up, glared at both of them, and walked back a few feet and faced them. Then he noticed the look on their faces.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"It's…It's your eyes. They aren't…aren't…oh go look in the mirror!" Keyarrion stammered.

Confused and worried, Bareck obediently went over to the mirror that hung over the dresser and looked up at his reflection. Startled, he took a reflexive step back. His eyes were no longer blue…in fact; they had somehow turned a bloody red. So now it was truly happening; he was becoming a shadow creature of the Black Woods.

XxXxXx

"Baurus, you know perfectly well that you don't have to come along in this?" Bareck said.

"And you know perfectly well that once I've made up my mind nothing is going to change it. Stop complaining about it already, I'm coming whether you like it or not." Baurus answered calmly, like he had a dozen times before.

Bareck huffed out a sigh but didn't continue to argue as the trio made their way away from Bruma and into the wild. They had decided pretty quickly after the discovery of Bareck's new eye color to immediately start out instead of waiting for morning. They didn't have as much time as they thought and they wanted to make as much use of the little time they did have. Baurus had made it clear that he was going to come. Keyarrion had seemed both relieved and annoyed at this news but didn't try to stop him. Bareck, on the other hand, had tried, in vain, to talk the Blade out of it, but Baurus wouldn't hear of it. While Bareck was secretly relieved to have another experienced warrior among them, he was also annoyed that _now_ Baurus decided to join him in a dangerous adventure.

The others noticed that Bareck, normally good natured and very patient, was getting more and more moody with each passing mile. It wasn't just the cold that was prickling the elf's temper, or the fact that, while leaving the city, someone had called him a Dunmer. Normally he didn't have a problem with the dark elves; he just didn't want to be called one anymore than a Dunmer wanted to be called an Altmer or Bosmer. No, something else stirred inside him that made him irritable.

He was getting jumpy too. Every movement or sound caught his attention. Anything, whether it was a bird or a plant swaying in the breeze, that moved in the shadows made him start. The weather had cleared up and the sun was out, chasing away the shadow creatures, but that just made Bareck even more nervous. He could feel them, hiding not very far away, waiting for the perfect moment.

They called to him, telling him to come home, away from the light and back to the shadows. They tried to tell him to kill his friends, to feel their blood running down his arms and to watch their hearts stop beating forever. He ignored the voices and eventually they would cease for a while. But he knew they would try again and again until he either succumbed or went insane if he wasn't already.

Between all that and the constant headaches and nightmares, small wonder he was becoming very irritable.

Baurus also noticed the change in his old friend. While it worried him, he looked on the practical side of things. Keyarrion, though obviously a good warrior and had a good heart, didn't seem to notice the danger she was in. If the creatures that hunted Bareck didn't get her, Bareck himself eventually would. He would give in to the change and turn on them, through no fault of his own, but he was still a formidable foe. Baurus kept on eye on him, watching for the signs of the inevitable attack.

It did come. Not 3 days after they had left Bruma, somewhere between county Bruma and county Cheydinhal, they had stopped to take a short break by a small stream. They had had to take more frequent breaks due to the altitude and each one seemed to only fuel Bareck's vicious mood.

Keyarrion was checking Mina over for sores or cuts and Baurus was refilling their water skins. Bareck wandered a little ways away, hoping that if he got away a bit, he could calm down some. He had been feeling a little hopeful that they would make it as he hadn't had an "episode" in several days and nothing beyond the redness of his eyes had occurred. He sank down to the ground wearily; closing his eyes and trying to let the sound of the stream gurgling next to him calm him.

Suddenly, the peace that had just started to come over him was shattered as an arrow thudded into the ground not an inch to the right of his leg. He leapt up and leaped behind the rock he had been leaning against for cover as more arrows clattered where he had been sitting not a second before. He glanced around the rock to see 4 bandits, 2 with bows, coming towards them. He heard Mina snort and the sound of Keyarrion and Baurus drawing their swords. He burned with anger at himself for not having his with him but he thought it was safer for everyone that way. Now he wished that he had it with him.

An arrow whizzed past his face. He could literally smell the magical effect of the arrow on it as it went by, could feel the current of its energy. More flew by, re-igniting his anger. This time, there was no holding back. The world around him went dark as his mind was filled, once again, with the shadows. He could hear the creatures howl with delight as he let the anger consume him. This time, however, the pain wasn't so bad. He could feel it in his limbs and his head but not the crippling pain of before. He felt more in control of it. Time to deal with those bandits.

He didn't need a weapon; he was the weapon. He met the first bandit in mid-stride. He never got the chance to even swing his battle axe at the mad elf before Bareck sank his teeth into his neck. The Bosmer's teeth suddenly grew longer than a vampire's and equally as sharp. He wasn't out to drink their blood though…he just wanted to rip their throats out and watch them squirm until they died. He yanked his head up, pulling the throat out of his victim. He felt the warm blood drench him, so welcoming in the cold mountain air. He spit his mouthful of flesh out; he would have time to clean up his mess later after he finished killing the rest of them.

The second bandit didn't seem to understand that he wouldn't win. He simply roared with rage and charged at Bareck, holding his iron claymore in front of him. Bareck crouched on all fours like a wild animal, waiting…waiting, now! Again, Bareck exulted the feeling of blood washing over his upper body as another throat left its owner's body.

Keyarrion and Baurus had quickly taken out the archers and turned to the elf. Bareck, lost in the shadows, didn't see them as his friends. He saw them as more people he had to kill before he was allowed to feed on his prizes. He exercised caution, however. Lost in the shadows though he was, he could still see that both were experienced fighters, not the sorry excuses of worthless meat the last two kills were. He quickly sized them up and worked out his plan of attack. One seemed to relax and lowered her sword. Bareck struck.

They were only about 5 yards away and Bareck covered that ground in a splintering second; too fast for any of them to recover or retaliate. His momentum knocked the much larger prey down and he quickly moved towards her throat. He could smell her fear, so heavy in the air that it made his eyes smart. He could hear her heart pounding in her ribs, but only for so long…He could feel the blood flowing in the artery in her neck, right below his teeth. He heard the scream. He began to close his teeth in glorious victory, waiting eagerly for the gush of warm blood. His teeth pierced the skin…

Author's note: Finally…some major blood…Also, I didn't mean for this to sound vampire-ish. I just like going for the jugular; there's more blood involved. Also, one needs a good set of fangs to get to that gusher.

-Vanillathunder215


	10. Ugly Reality

As Bareck sank his teeth into the neck of his victim, something moved behind him. Fool! In his exuberance, he had completely forgotten to make sure there was no more prey lurking about behind him! He detached himself from his victim and flung himself off as Mina reared up, legs flailing, neighing loudly to warn him off.

He was thrown off balance by his impromptu release and landed awkwardly on his knees as he tried to avoid the flailing hoofs. He slid a few feet before he thrust his foot out in front of him and turned himself around on the toe of his boot while stopping. He saw that the other prey was charging at him, just like the bandits did. Feeling his confidence return at the sight of a familiar move, Bareck waited for the right moment before his attack. Just as before, he leaped, but his prey had been counting on it. He dodged to the side just as Bareck made contact, throwing the elf off balance and giving himself time to continue with his plan. Instead of bringing his sword down on the enraged elf, ending his life, he dove on top of him, mindful of flashing teeth, and used his size and weight to pin the much smaller Bosmer to the ground. Baurus' shoulder ground into Bareck's chest, making him grunt as the air was forced from his lungs. He grabbed Bareck's free arm and twisted it to discourage him from trying to pull free and with his other hand, pushed Bareck's head back, totally immobilizing him.

Baurus waited till he was sure he had Bareck pinned completely to the ground before looking over to Keyarrion. She was sitting up, rubbing at her bleeding neck, looking upset and angry at the same time. Her horse, Mina, was nuzzling her, urging her to get up. Keyarrion looked up at Baurus and nodded, showing she was alright before turning her gaze toward Bareck. For his part, Bareck let out an agonized howl at being denied his chance to kill and feed on the flesh of his prey. His teeth glinted in the bright sun, showing white and clean through all the blood that covered him from his victims. The howl he had let loose was enough to make even the timber wolves in the area run away. Keyarrion barely recognized him in this state.

Keyarrion shuddered as she looked at him. Baurus had tried to warn her about this. He had tried to tell her that, eventually, Bareck would turn on them, given the right circumstances. It wouldn't be his fault at all, but he wouldn't be able to distinguish friend from foe…or from prey. He would attack regardless. Keyarrion didn't heed Baurus at all. After all, Bareck had made it several days without an "episode" of sorts. Still, a cut on her neck was a cheap enough price to pay for her ignorance...Bareck, even when he wasn't influenced by a curse, was stronger and faster than she was.

Baurus panted with the effort of keeping Bareck pinned down. He had forgotten that, despite his smaller size, the wood elf was very strong and extremely agile. The shadowed frenzy that was slowly consuming him only added to his strength and almost made it impossible for Baurus to hold him down…almost. The Redguard still had much more endurance in him than Bareck ever would, which showed as Bareck's struggles became less and less powerful and Baurus was finally able to catch his breath.

But how to end this new fit? How on earth would they bring Bareck back from the shadows and into the world of light? Baurus thought quickly and came up with the only solution he could think of. Feeling Bareck gather strength for one last attempt to get free, Baurus acted quickly and brought his iron gauntleted fist down hard on Bareck's temples, effectively knocking him out. Carefully he stood up; making sure that the elf was indeed unconscious and not faking it as some foes do.

Blood dripped from Bareck's new fangs as his mouth hung slightly open and the blood that wasn't his ran in rivulets from his body. His clothes were soaked with blood, his skin stained red. Baurus glanced down at himself and saw that the blood had rubbed off on his armor, turning the silver a bloody red. They both looked as if they had fought in a battle instead of killing four simple bandits.

Feeling slightly disturbed about the whole thing Baurus left Bareck lying on the ground for a moment, confident that it would be a while before he woke up, especially after that hard hit he had provided to the elf's skull, and took a look at the bodies that Bareck had left behind.

They were lying in a pool of their own blood, their bodies literally drained of it. Each one had a look of terrified horror on their blood splattered face, the last look of realization before they died. Their weapons had blood splattered on it, but it wasn't the target's blood that stained the metal…it was the wielder's as their blood spurted from their severed necks. Baurus felt his stomach lurch at the grisly scene. He couldn't even look at their torn necks or what was left of it as it lay next to them. Baurus had seen plenty of bloody horror and dripping gore in past battles and fights, but this was the worst. Not even the most blood thirsty fiends had ever accomplished this kind of massacre. Never had he seen anything like this in all his life and he hoped never to see it again.

"Let's go." Baurus said quietly. Keyarrion, still white-faced and silent, nodded her agreement. She too had seen blood and gore, but, like with Baurus, it was too much. She just wanted to be away from this blood soaked horror. She took hold of Mina's reins and followed Baurus, who had the unconscious Bosmer lying across his shoulders. They could deal with him later; they just wanted to get as far away from the blood drenched creek bend as possible.

As they moved away and began to disappear in the distance, a change came over the creek bend. The sun seemed to run away, casting the area into darkness. The wind, too, fled, making the area as dead and lifeless as the Black Woods itself. Indeed, as the transformation was complete, several shadowy creatures appeared from their hiding places in the trees and began to feast on what was left of the bandits. One creature stood over them as they feasted, like a master supervising his hounds at dinner time.

He was a massive being, easily over 7 feet tall and overly endowed with huge bulging muscles that rippled smoothly under his shadowy skin at the slightest movement. He was no deadra, but something that made even the most wicked of deadra cringe; he was called Vorac, named for his rabid appetite and insatiable need for bloodshed and violence. He was second only to the Dark Guardian, a general, in some sort of sense, and lorded over the other shadows with such brutality that none dared go near him.

However, he did not join in the feeding frenzy, but watched quietly as the trio disappeared completely from view over a crest of a hill. He was supposed to track the new changeling until he was ready to join their ranks. Normally he didn't perform such jobs…there were others more suitable for the simple task, but this particular changeling held a certain interest with the Dark Guardian and he wanted to ensure it would be done. The fact that new changeling was now out of sight didn't bother Vorac. He didn't need to see him to know where he was. He could just as easily smell his soon-to-be brethren.

XxXxXx

At first, Keyarrion and Baurus didn't worry about Bareck. He was breathing deeply and evenly and didn't seem to be that badly concussed, but when nightfall came and he still didn't show any signs of waking up, they became concerned. Guilt tugged at Baurus' heart. Even though he had done it for Bareck's sake and their safety, he hadn't meant to knock him out for this long.

Indeed Bareck stayed asleep for the rest of the evening and most of the night. Towards dawn of the next morning, he began to shift a little and his eyes twitched beneath the lids. Keyarrion was on watch and she cautiously moved a little closer to him as he began to wake up, her dagger in her hand and sword not far away. Bareck's eye moved a little bit more before he slowly dragged them open.

XxXxXx

Bareck's eyes felt like they weighed a thousand pounds as he dragged them open. His body was extremely stiff and sore and his head felt like someone had tried to split it open like a piece of firewood. Why was he lying here like this? He didn't remember a fire going when they had stopped by the creek bend. He couldn't remember anything except that he had jumped behind a boulder to…why had he leaped behind that rock? Had they been attacked?

"Bareck?" a hesitant voice asked softly, "Can you hear me?"

Gingerly, Bareck rolled over and sat up, trying to ignore his protesting body, looking into Keyarrion's feline blue eyes. He saw apprehension there, worry and little bit of anger. Breaking away from her intense gaze, he glanced around, trying to get his bearings. He didn't see a stream anywhere and the sky was dark with a slight pinkish tinge on the horizon signaling dawn.

"Keyarrion…where are we?"

"You don't remember anything?" She asked, raising a thin eyebrow.

"I remember stopping at the creek…then, blackness. Why? What happened?" Bareck began to get the feeling that something bad had happened and, judging by the look in Keyarrion's eyes, it was probably going to be pertaining to him.

Keyarrion hesitated. She didn't want to lie to Bareck, or infuriate him with a flat-out refusal, but she had no idea how he would react if she told him that he had ripped out a man's throat with his teeth before turning on her and attempting to do the same to her.

"Keyarrion…please, tell me." Bareck asked softly, his heart thudding with dread in his chest, "Did this…curse make me do something…regrettable?"

She looked down at the ground, silently refusing his request. Bareck watched her silently for a moment but she turned away and began to get food out for breakfast. Bareck gave up; his head hurt too much too argue anyway. Speaking of which, he reached up and gingerly felt the large lump on his temple. Small wonder he couldn't remember anything. With a bump like that, he was lucky even to remember his own name.

As he tried to dig deep into his mind, trying to pull up any sort of fragment from his memories, he began to chew on his lower lip as he always did when he was thinking. He nearly yelped in pain as his teeth nearly shredded his lip. His hand flew to his mouth and he froze in shock as he felt long sharp fangs. He glanced at Keyarrion, who was watching him carefully, her face expressionless. Something on her neck caught his eye; two small cuts spaced the exact distance apart as his teeth. The blood drained from his face as realization spread through him. He suddenly didn't want to know what had happened anymore. He had a nasty feeling that he already knew.

XxXxXx

The rest of the day passed uneventfully, if a little strained. Bareck had convinced Baurus to give him a "brief" version of the events of the previous day while Keyarrion was stalking some deer for dinner. He tried to make Baurus promise to kill him next time but Baurus refused, saying that they had come too damn far into the bloody mountains to kill him now. Besides, if he was really that worried, they could always truss him up and let Mina drag him the rest of the way.

"After that scare you gave Keyarrion, Mina would probably drag you over every scrub brush and rock between here and this healer's place." Baurus said in an unsuccessful attempt at light humor.

"Baurus, my friend, you may be a great warrior and a man of good sense, but you are horrible at making a good joke." Bareck said dryly, slurring his S's a little as he tried to avoid spearing his tongue on his fangs.

"Why don't I just tie you up now? Give everyone a break." Baurus smiled broadly. Bareck was getting ready to respond in kind when Keyarrion came back over the ridge of hill, dragging a good size deer by the hind legs. Bareck simply avoided her gaze and said quietly to Baurus,

"Might make Keyarrion feel better."

"Can you blame her, though? You nearly ripped her neck out. I don't know how much experience you have with women but, mess with their looks in anyway and your head will be mounted on their wall and certain other body parts in a jar on the mantle." Baurus told him.

Bareck gave his friend a burning look, "Just because I seem to spend most of my time diving into caves and holes' looking for deadly books, ancient armor and a giant glowing stone doesn't mean that I don't have a few spare hours at the end of the day for…ah, "certain things"' Bareck smiled. Baurus rolled his eyes.

XxXxXx

Not 10 yards away, Vorac watched the two men from the shelter of the shadows of a clump of towering pine trees. He listened with interest to their conversation. He could use this information to pull the changeling in further while pushing his companions exactly where Vorac wanted them before he killed them.

Of course, he could always simply wait for nightfall and charge in with the Black Sword that was strapped to his back and make the other two changelings as well… Quickly he dismissed the idea. He didn't want to waste the time nor the energy it would take to finish the job and he knew that he would have to deal with the ever strengthening changeling, who still held loyalty to his friends. Vorac decided to use what little patience he possessed for this job instead of force.

Silently he rose and retreated further back into the trees. He hadn't fed in nearly 3 weeks since he had begun his journey from the Black Woods to follow this new charge and his was nearly rabid with hunger. He didn't want his eagerness to eat to overcome his sense in strategy. He needed to eat or risk compromising his mission. His keen sense of smell picked up the scent of blood and he followed it to another camp about a mile or so away from his targets. 4 men sat around a small fire, roasting deer meat and drinking ale, laughing loudly.

Vorac bared his fangs in eager satisfaction. It wasn't the deer he was after, but meat that, to him, was far sweeter. He flexed his claws and muscles before beginning his charge. There was no need for stealth here; the men would never realize that death was upon them until it was too late. The hunt was over before it had even begun. The shadow general had ripped out their throats similar to what Bareck had done several hours earlier, but with more speed and less shouting. Vorac raised his head and howled in victory over the corpses before setting down to devouring his prey.

A mile away, the keen ears of Bareck caught the last echoes of Vorac's howl and shuddered.

TBC…

Author's note: Some people might be getting confused over my "shadows" so I'll explain it all in the next chapter. Enjoy! Thanks to everyone who left me a review. One of the reasons I keep going with this story…

-Vanillthunder215


	11. Highs and Lows

Bareck never went back to his vicious mood, which was a major relief to everyone. In fact, he was in a rather sober mood, especially when Keyarrion was around. While he believed her to be angry and suspicious of him, but she, in truth, was simply coming to grips with the situation in her own way. He had forgotten that she was used to her own company and was not used to sharing her feelings like the other women he had been in contact with. Still, he wisely kept his distance, waiting for her to break the ice.

But Bareck was in a quiet mood for other reasons than simply his conviction of Keyarrion's feelings. He hadn't been feeling quite so good since he had ripped those bandits' throats out. He had thought he had gotten past this back when Keyarrion had first found him lying unconscious in the woods by the Imperial City after he had fled from there like a nut. His protesting stomach, along with an ever persistent headache, made nausea a constant vexation. He experienced moments when all he wanted to do was curl up and try to sleep it off, but stubborn pride and a deep fear of never being able to get going again kept him plodding doggedly after Baurus and Keyarrion.

They were getting even higher in the mountains now, the terrain getting rougher and rougher and the weather more disagreeable. They covered less ground each day as strong winds and jagged rocks hindered their progress. More sure-footed and mountain bred, Baurus and Keyarrion had little trouble navigating the mountainous ground, but Bareck, born and bred in Valenwood, was having trouble. He didn't have much to do with the mountains if he could help it and had little experience with them. If he had, he would have realized that he was suffering from more than what he had gone through back in the Imperial City; he was suffering from altitude sickness.

He never mentioned anything, believing that he would throw it off soon, like before. After all, he was a Bosmer…his natural resistance to illness and disease ensured that he wouldn't have to suffer long.

They were 80 miles north of Lake Arrius when a blizzard blew in. The air had been rather still and the temperature dropping steadily, making even the cold-hardened Baurus start to feel slightly uncomfortable. It wasn't long before Bareck's keen ears caught a roaring noise. He looked behind them, slightly northward, and noticed a wall of white blasting their way, much like watching a severe rain storm rushing in. He gave a cry of alarm to the others and they quickly looked about for shelter, any shelter, to wait out the storm.

"Quick, over here!" Keyarrion shouted, pointing to a shallow cave that even Mina could walk into. Not in the position to be picky about running headfirst into an unexplored cave where they could be trapped for possibly days, the 2 men followed her into the cave, slamming the door shut just as the snowy wind began to howl viciously. Baurus and Bareck stood just inside the door, panting a little, listening to the wind. A sudden, short, rasping noise made them jump. Keyarrion raised a teasing eyebrow at them as she held up the newly lighted torch, causing the men to shrug and grin sheepishly.

The cave wasn't all that big; it had only one room that went back about 50 yards and was about 25 yards across but it had a high ceiling and had a overall roomy feel to it. It was more like a deep depression in the rocks with a door than a cave. They lit a fire in the middle of the room after thoroughly exploring the room and sat down to wait out the storm. Mina stood nearby, snorting in dismay over the lack of grass or fodder to graze on. Bareck leaned back against a rock by the fire, enjoying the warmth on his freezing body. He played absentmindedly with some pebbles, rolling them around with his fingertips, trying to get his mind off his painful belly. Finally he couldn't stand it any longer and he gave in to his exhaustion and curled up on his side, cradling his stomach in his arms, trying to ignore some of the worried looks he knew where being thrown at him. His eyes drifted shut as he allowed sleep to come over him, hoping for his pain to pass.

XxXxXx

Vorac walked easily through the snow storm, his black form conveniently hidden in the white snow by the furious wind. Cold had no effect at all on him, nor the searing effect of the wind. He was harder and colder than any blizzard. He walked steadily and silently towards the door of the cave. It was almost just as hidden from view as he was, but, once again, his 6th since made it possible for him to know where he was going so that he didn't need his eyes to see the door that sheltered his changeling.

He stopped just outside, deciding on what to do. He could always just go, slaughter everyone but the changeling and simply force him to come with him, finalizing the change that way…or he could wait and amuse himself later. He smiled as he opted for the latter. He had been given this horrendously boring job and he wanted to make the most of whatever entertainment he could from it. Looking around briefly, Vorac went and settled himself like a vulture on a pile of rocks in plain view of the door not 10 feet away, completely oblivious to the storm. He closed his eyes as he carefully worked out his plan. He couldn't drag this out for too long; his senses told him that he needed to get the changeling out of this high altitude before the whole mission became pointless. While death was required for the final initiation, premature death destroyed the process and permanently destroyed the changeling. Vorac couldn't afford that. For now, however, he could wait.

XxXxXx

For several hours the storm raged, turning the rough world completely white outside. Baurus fell asleep quickly after Bareck had, leaving Keyarrion to keep the fire going with whatever she could find. When the sound of the wind finally died down, Keyarrion got up and stretched, heading for the door. Baurus and Bareck were still asleep, the former snoring loud enough to wake a drunken goblin and the latter curled up on his side in the same position as when he fell asleep, still cradling his stomach. She looked at them for a few more seconds and pulled the door open, giving a silent thanks that the door swung in and not out.

At first, all she saw was white. The snow had blanketed everything in nearly 2 feet of snow. Far from feeling upset about it, Keyarrion smiled. It had been far too long since the last time she had seen and, yes, played in the cold white stuff. She scooped her hand through it, rubbing it in her fingers like farmer would with dirt. Then something moved, catching her eye.

She stood in frozen shock as _something_ rose up from a pile of snow covered rocks directly in front of her, shaking snow from its back as it did. She found herself staring into a pair of red eyes that nearly made her heart stop in panic. It smiled, making a weird grunting noise that might have passed for laughter. She didn't stay to find out if it was; she leapt backwards, slamming the door shut and hurtling back into the cave, waking Baurus and Bareck as she flew in.

Baurus leapt up, pulling his sword as he ran back up to the door and threw it open, Bareck getting to his feet a little more sluggishly and following behind.

XxXxXx

Vorac still remained where he was, smiling wickedly to himself as he watched the girl run. She would be easy to kill and he could have some fun with her in the process of killing her. But he wanted to see the other one. He needed as much information about them so he could formulate his plan to have as much amusement as possible. A few moments later, the door burst open again and a big Redguard in heavy armor with the changeling behind came out.

"What in the name of Talos…?" He heard the Redguard whisper. He frowned. Vorac hated any association with the Nine Divines and especially hated when it was mentioned in reference to him. He would make sure that that lesson would burn itself into the Redguard's brain as he drew his final breath. At that thought Vorac's frown disappeared as he struggled to contain his excitement. Others would have wanted to spend more time with the pink-haired Breton girl…but Vorac got all the arousal and pleasure he needed from blood, torture and death. He smiled again and let them get a good look at him.

XxXxXx

Baurus could hardly believe what he was seeing. At first, the creature in front of him seemed to be made of nothing but vapor, but on a closer look he had black leather skin pulled taunt over heavy muscles. He stood on two legs that looked like a dog or wolf's legs, but much bigger and bulging with muscles. Instead of standing flat-footed, he stood on the three toes on the end of his feet, his heels ending in a point, making it impossible to flat-footed. But he could raise and lower himself on those toes, altering his height by nearly 8in, depending on his mood. The talons on his 3 toes gouged into the rock, making it crumble like wet sand. His upper body was more humanoid, except his hands ended in talons instead of fingers, and his face, too, was somewhat humanoid. Actually, it reminded all three of them of the face of a deadra with his red eyes and the typical sneer. Like a deadra he had a few horns adorning his head but they were not as long or as sharp as the deadra they had seen. However, deadra did not have fangs as long or as sharp as this black monster did.

His sneer deepened in what seemed a smile and he beckoned with his taloned hand for them to come closer. No…he was motioning _Bareck_ to come closer.

Baurus heard a sharp intake of air behind him and he glanced over his shoulder to see the elf staring in morbid fascination at the creature. His eyes held a mixture of terror and elation. He felt the want, the need, to go to this black creature…but at the same time, something screamed at him to stay away. Slowly that voice started to fade, losing strength as the longing began to flood his mind. He shifted his weight to move his foot forward.

"Bareck! Stay!" Baurus barked. It was a desperate, last second effort to get Bareck to remain, but it was enough to pull Bareck out of his revere. Instead of going forward, he quickly pulled back a few steps, pressing his back into the rock wall behind him. The black creature looked a little disappointed but quickly turned his sneer/smile back to Baurus.

"Tick tock." He said, his voice deep and rough, "Tick tock. Then, he's mine." He gave that deep harsh grunting noise again that Baurus assumed was laughter and vanished into the shadows, his grunts remaining in the air.

Baurus stared after him for a few seconds, and then turned back to Bareck when he heard a soft crunch as Bareck fell to his knees in the snow. He too was staring after the departed monster, his eyes burning with mixed emotions. He hated to, but Baurus had to ask.

"Bareck…what was that thing?"

"Vorac…Vorac. Don't ask me how I know his name. He's coming for me. He's waiting for me to join the shadows so he can bring me back to the Black Woods…where the Dark Guardian waits…" He said in a stupefied whisper. Then he looked up at Baurus with hunted eyes, "He won't stop following us until he has me or us or him are dead."

Bareck got up and stumbled a few steps out, ignoring Baurus' warning. He fell to his knees again a few steps away, too shaky and sick to go any further.

"More deadly than deadra…" Baurus whispered, remembering what Jauffre had told him.

Bareck suddenly threw up violently at those words, turning the snow bright red.

XxXxXx

Author's note: This simply hasn't been Bareck's weeks has it? That altitude sickness can be a real bitch, especially to those not used to high altitudes…suddenly I like my coastal plain altitude, even if it is hotter than hell here now. XD. Read, review and enjoy!!!

-Vanillathunder215


	12. Just When You Thought It Was Safe

Bareck lost strength at an alarming rate after their encounter with Vorac. No one was sure whether it was the altitude sickness or the curse afflicting him that was the main cause, but he couldn't seem to keep up any longer.

Baurus also had a suspicion that it also might have been the cold. The closer they got to the border of Skyrim, the further the temperature dropped and the slower Bareck moved.

It wasn't just Bareck; Keyarrion, Mina and Baurus were all starting to feel the strain of climbing over endless frozen mountains, only to see yet another and another, the snowy rocky terrain stretching on interminably. Keyarrion was in front with Mina one morning as they crested yet another mountain when she saw it; a plume of smoke rising from behind a smaller hill below her. She followed the plume with her eyes and could just see the tip of a brick chimney. Only one person lived out here; the Kahjiit healer, Re-Asker. They had made it.

Feeling more energized than she had in days, Keyarrion turned back to her companions. Bareck, unable to walk on his own now, was leaning heavily on Baurus as they went along, his head hanging in fatigue and his feet struggling to catch the ground. Baurus went along slowly. Strong though he was, it was difficult to pull himself and nearly 150lbs of near dead weight over mountains in utter exhaustion.

"Boys, we made it! We're here! I see the house!" Keyarrion called, almost dancing in delight. Bareck heard her, but couldn't find the effort to look up or the heart to get excited. He had slipped even further into the shadows and couldn't feel any hope. Baurus, on the other hand, picked up his pace and soon joined Keyarrion on the ridge. Together they went down and quickly found themselves in front of a small log cabin, small windows well lit and welcoming smoke pouring from the chimney. Keyarrion reached up and knocked.

The door cracked open slightly after a short interval and they heard a distinct Kahjiit voice ask,

"How disturbs this one so far in the mountains?"

"Are you Re-Asker?" Keyarrion asked.

"Yes, this one is Re-Asker. Who is the prey?"

"Please, you are the only one who can help us. My name is Keyarrion. This is Baurus and this is Bareck. As you can see, Bareck is seriously ill and we have been told that only you can make the antidote to save him." Keyarrion said with a pleading tone in her voice.

"Come in. Put that one by the fire to thaw and tell this one the story." The door opened wider to reveal an ancient Kahjiit female with a silver muzzle and silver fur around her ears. She walked slowly, painfully, away from the door, leading them to a roaring fire. Keyarrion closed the door behind them and Baurus lay the unresisting Bosmer down in front of the fire. He lay there like a dead thing while the others related their tale to Re-Asker.

Before they were even finished she was kneeling on the floor next to Bareck, rolling him over and looking over his body. She deftly removed his shirt, revealing the still fresh scars from his old wounds that now seemed ages ago, and traced his sharply defined muscles with one worn claw. Bareck didn't move the whole time the old Kahjiit prodded him, his eyes distant and unfocused, reflecting the firelight next to him.

"He's gone far into the sickness." Re-Asker said after a while, "He has fought admirably for a long time, much longer than anyone ever has, but now he has weakened and he is starting to allow the sickness to swallow him. There is not much time left but I think I can save him."

She got up slowly and made her way to a small desk where an assortment of alchemy tools stood. She began to pull out books and ingredients and at the same time talking to Keyarrion and Baurus.

"Another thing; he is greatly weakened by the mountain sickness. One of you needs to look after him until I am ready and the other needs to try and keep those blasted shadows away. All of them, especially Vorac, will not leave until Bareck is perfectly healthy again."

"You know of Vorac? We didn't mention his name." Keyarrion frowned.

"I have seen him enough. Those who have sought me for the same reason as you have either told me of him or were hunted by him." Re-Asker growled, "He was once a man, like your Bosmer, but as you can see, not much remains. Be careful; in life he was a powerful warrior, but in death, he is more powerful than any mortal being."

Keyarrion got the feeling that Re-Asker knew more about Vorac but she didn't press Re-Asker for more information. Instead, she settled herself down next to Bareck, who still hadn't moved since Baurus had dumped him on the floor, and Baurus quietly slipped out the door.

For a while it was peaceful. Keyarrion had warmed up and the room had that warm homey feeling to it. The sounds of Re-Asker mixing up the potion reminded Keyarrion of when she was little and her mother and grandmother would mix up potions. She loved the sound of the gentle flames under the apparatus', the chink of glass, the smell of the various ingredients…well, most of them anyway. She settled herself more comfortably on the thick fur rug that she and Bareck were on. Bareck was still motionless but his breathing had steadied out, indicating that he was getting some much-needed sleep. Keyarrion pulled him closer like she had done when he had gotten attacked by the flying shadow creature, and settled his head in her lap, keeping a close eye on him. She could see the scars on his neck and the exposed part of his back from their encounter. It seemed ages ago. Gently she pushed dark hair away from Bareck's forehead.

Then her hand froze. She placed her hand on Bareck's forehead again. Instead of feeling a fever heat like she expected, his skin was freezing, like he had just been outside instead of by a fire for the past few hours. He was breathing fine and seemed ok, but he was as cold as death! Keyarrion looked up in alarm at Re-Asker.

The old female Kahjiit had stopped a moment to check on the two younger ones behind her and had seen Keyarrion's alarm. She gave the Breton woman a small smile and explained.

"Don't be too alarmed. The shadows aren't living beings; therefore their temperature is that of a dead thing. His temperature will drop but it is not one of the last stages before his…initiation. Do not worry." Her rough voice comforting. Keyarrion tried to smile back but she couldn't help but worry. He was her friend. She had come to admire his strength and his courage because she hadn't really heard him complain at all…if ever. She looked at her friend again. No…it was more than that. Something in her stomach fluttered. That was when she woke up to that fact that she considered him more than a friend…she had grown to love him. She leaned down and gently kissed his cool forehead. He twitched slightly, the first movement he had made in several hours, but slept on.

Suddenly, the peace was shattered by a yell from Baurus, as loud and as clear as if he were right beside them. Keyarrion almost leapt up but she remembered that Bareck's head was in her lap. Much to her surprise, Bareck suddenly woke up and rolled nimbly away, landing in a crouched position. His red eyes gleamed. Had his skin been darker, he would have easily been mistaken for a Dunmer…a short Dunmer.

Seeing as it might be futile, or dangerous, to tell Bareck to stay inside, both Keyarrion and Bareck ran out to Baurus' aid.

XxXxXx

Years with the Blades had sharpened Baurus' senses. He was naturally alert due to his Redguard heritage but with the rigorous training and hard earned experience, Baurus was acutely aware of what went on around him. Even though he was cold and weary, he was still on high alert. Memories of that hideous monster, Vorac, kept him even more alert.

He wandered around a bit, getting used to the immediate terrain. The house was situated between two small hills, making it hard to find, except for the smoke from the chimney, unless you were right in front of it. The ground went even for about 30 feet from the front of the house before it dropped away, giving a breath-taking view of a deep valley below. Baurus situated himself on rock near the drop-off where he could see the house and the hills above and around it, as well as being able to keep an eye on the path leading to the house from around the hill.

As the hours passed, Baurus had to get up and move around a bit to keep from freezing his butt to the rock. Once he loosened himself up and got the blood flowing through his veins, he decided to take another look around. He was getting suspicious about the lack of trouble he was getting, especially since he had been told that trouble had always been around before. Something was wrong.

Suddenly, the world around him seemed to darken. The sun seemed to run in panic and the wind died down, making the world as still as death. Baurus' Akaviri Katana was in his hands and he crouched in a fighting stance. For a moment all was silent in the darkened world. Then all hell broke loose. Baurus gave a huge yell before he dived into the mass of shadow creatures.

XxXxXx

Keyarrion and Bareck didn't have to go very far to find the trouble. They barely ran 3 steps before they were intercepted by several shadow creatures. These were unlike Vorac and his soldiers in many ways. Whereas Vorac's soldiers were just smaller versions of himself, these creatures were simply creatures that one might see in the living world…just corrupted and swallowed by shadows. Normal creatures though they might have been, they possessed an abnormal amount of strength, speed and aggressiveness, making them difficult to fight alone and nearly impossible in great numbers. However, Bareck quickly changed that.

With a snarl he leapt into the fray head-on. Never mind the fact that he was unarmored and unarmed. His body was shield enough and his teeth and hands weapon enough. He was, if anything, even more powerful and ruthless than when he had killed those bandits. He ripped and tore his way through the mass of shadows, clearing a path for Keyarrion who hacked away at any he missed.

Baurus was starting to feel slightly overwhelmed by the sheer numbers he faced when they all suddenly fled. He stared after them, unwilling to chase them down, and lowered his sword.

As if that were a signal, Vorac's soldiers suddenly poured in from all around, surrounding them. Baurus and Bareck tensed; it reminded them both so much of the great battle at the Great Gate, with the deadra coming in from 3 gates. They both wondered, briefly, how a deadra would fare against one of these monsters.

Bareck was feeling torn. His heart and loyalties lay strongly to his friends but these creatures called out to him and he longed to join them. He would be free from the sick feeling he had been experiencing, the pain, both emotional and physical, everything. He would be free…

An unearthly noise erupted from his throat. It was a cross between a shriek and a howl and seemed filled with despair. But it changed to a war cry that Baurus recognized; it was the same one he had given as he had rushed towards the deadra. Indeed, he now rushed out and began his bloody fight with the Shadows, Keyarrion and Baurus right behind him.

XxXxXx

Author's note; I know…I'm evil for stopping right as it gets good. More reviews might mean a faster post…XD. ENJOY!!

-vanillathunder215


	13. Too Late?

Bareck met the first Shadow soldier head-on. Teeth flashed and talons ripped at each others flesh as they locked in a deadly embrace. Bareck's smaller stature made it difficult for the huge Shadow to get a good hold on him to deliver a killing blow. Bareck didn't make it easy; he twisted his body one way and his arms and head the other, making it impossible to tell exactly which way he was moving. Finally, he ducked under another desperate blow and bobbed up as soon as the claws passed over head, slamming himself into the Shadow and bowling him over. Bareck then ripped his throat out, screeching in disgust over the taste of the thick black ooze that poured sluggishly out of the gaping wound. He spit and gagged for a moment, trying to get the taste out of this mouth before he leaped at another one.

Baurus swung his sword with all his might at the charging Shadows, hearing the metallic hiss as it cut through the air. His entire arm rang with the impact as it slammed deep into the Shadow's chest, causing it to screech before it fell, more black mire staining the ground and Baurus' sword. He wretched his sword from the still body and lunged for another one.

Keyarrion kept her sword at her side for now. She jumped on a rock a little ways away, getting a perfect vantage point of all the creatures running around before her. She held up her hands, lining the up with one that was trying to grab the pesky little Bosmer from behind as he ripped out its brethren's throat. She concentrated briefly on the familiar spell, feeling the warmth of it in her chest before it moved to her hands, getting hotter and hotter till a burst of flames erupted from her hands and disintegrated the Shadow just as it leaped for Bareck, who remained totally oblivious to the danger he was just in. She chose another target and began to release her fireball spell at an amazing speed, disintegrating Shadows as fast as she could.

Between the three of them, they took care of the Shadows fairly quickly. Bareck ripped the throat out of the last one, gagging loudly at the taste. He stood, shaky but alive and faced his friends. He smiled, revealing his fangs that were stained black with the blood of the Shadows. Keyarrion frowned…something was wrong. This had been too easy.

"Look out!" She screamed at Baurus, as the "dead" Shadow behind him suddenly surged up to his feet, his wounds closing and healing over.

All around them, the Shadows were rising, their wounds healing and their strength and energy replenished. Of course! You couldn't "kill" a dead thing with normal weapons and attacks. Only those that Keyarrion had destroyed with her spells did not come back.

"Bareck! Use your magic!" She screamed, lobbing more fireballs into the mass of Shadows, "Baurus, do you have another weapon or know any magic?"

"No!" Baurus yelled back as he desperately fought back at an enraged Shadow.

Bareck's hands lit up as he cast a fire spell and a lightning spell simultaneously and obliterated 3 Shadows at once. As good as he was with magic, he was nowhere in league with the Breton woman, even with Imperial in her blood, and his magicka was greatly weakened with such a powerful spell. He stopped for a second, catching his breath and went to just throwing one spell at a time. He had to hit the Shadows with two spells to dismiss them whereas Keyarrion had to only use one. Such was the difference between Bosmer and Bretons.

Baurus realized that he was not going to be much use in getting rid of the attacking Shadows so he switched to driving them within range of the two mage's attacks. This time, they were able to rid themselves completely of the Shadows.

When the last one disappeared in a shocking burst of lightning, all three fell to their knees, panting and sweating despite the cold. Bareck hung his head. Now that the adrenaline was leaving him, he felt utterly exhausted, his limbs like lead and his head heavy. He wanted to fall back asleep but he suddenly felt eyes boring into him. He heard Keyarrion's gasp and a hiss of a sword being drawn. He lifted his head to see Vorac standing calmly in the middle of the black-stained clearing, some 20 more soldiers standing nearby at attention.

"Well well, I see you found out how to vanquish us. Too bad it won't work on these boys." He motioned to the Shadows being him, "I gave you the option long ago to simply give me the changeling and I would walk away, leaving you unharmed. Since you have refused that offer and I am not inclined to waste the time or the energy in making you one of us, prepare to die a long horrible death."

At the same time he and Bareck sprang at each other, both screaming their battle cries. That cry was like a signal to both parties and the Shadow soldiers and Bareck's companions began their battle while Bareck and Vorac grappled in the middle.

Vorac had been right in saying that spells wouldn't work so well on his personal soldiers, but he hadn't taken into account the strength and speed at which Keyarrion could fire off spells, especially when she was angry as she was now. Her spells sliced right through the soldiers dispel shields and destroyed the Shadow behind it.

Baurus felt helpless. His sword was useless and he knew no spells that would help. He was a warrior through and through, not a mage!

"Psst! Red-guard!" Baurus whipped his head around and saw Re-Asker holding a sword in the door way of her house. She threw it with surprising strength for someone her age and disappeared back into the house, a spell shimmering over the door briefly. Baurus caught the long sword and grinned as he felt magic literally making the sword vibrate. He spun and buried in into an oncoming Shadow. It screeched, its body shuddering as it stopped in mid-stride and vanished in a puff of black smoke right before Baurus' eyes.

"Oh, I'm going to like you." Baurus said to the sword. The sword seemed to vibrate even more at his words. With a yell, Baurus ran to help Keyarrion.

Bareck was shocked at the speed and strength that Vorac possessed. He had vaguely heard Re-Asker talk about him as he had lay in a stupor on the floor, but he didn't expect this much strength. Vorac had already taken into consideration his opponent's size and had adjusted accordingly. Somehow, Vorac managed to attack Bareck despite his size much better than his soldiers who were much smaller than he was. Bareck's height advantage was gone.

Bareck was feeling a little desperate as he tried to think of a plan. He couldn't use any of the abilities his curse gave him, Vorac knew them all perfectly. He couldn't use his size difference, his magic wasn't strong enough and he had no weapon with him that would aid him. What was left to him that he could use to kill this beast? He slowed as frustration and despair took a hold of him.

"_And they call you the Champion of Cyrodiil? This one expected more out of you."_ He heard the voice of Re-Asker in his mind.

"_He is expecting you to do the things you normally do. Your advantage is_ unpredictability. _Do something he doesn't know you are capable of doing."_

"Such as what?" He muttered, "If I'm supposed to do something unexpected, then when I do it, I'll surprise even myself."

"_That is the point. Now, MOVE!" _

Bareck jumped as if struck by lightning. So he had to be unpredictable, eh? He lowered himself into his normal fighting stance and acted as if he were going to lunch at Vorac, just like normal. As soon as he saw Vorac move to block and counter the impending attack, Bareck leapt backwards, startling Vorac into falling forward. Bareck then danced to the side and buried his lengthening claws into the back of Vorac's neck, making him howl. Vorac threw his head back, dislodging Bareck's claws, and retaliated with a blow of his own. Bareck leapt up over it instead of ducking underneath it, silently praising himself for having a good knowledge of acrobatics, and kicked out at Vorac's hand. He heard a satisfying crack as he broke the bones on Vorac's wrist.

Knowing he couldn't keep this up for long before the enraged Shadow caught on, he mentally ran through his inventory of spells. He immediately nixed all his destruction spells and the 2 conjuration spells he knew. He didn't really know enough mysticism to help in anyway. Restoration really wouldn't help him win the fight…might be useful afterwards though. He hit on a spell he liked and began to summon the energy for it.

He waited for the purple energy to make its way from his chest to his hands before leaping up to Vorac. He placed his hands on the huge Shadow and let the energy loose on his target. Purple tendrils of energy flowed from Bareck's arms and hands onto Vorac's body. It didn't hurt the Shadow, but immediately he realized he couldn't move his feet from the ground. He couldn't move at all! Burden spell! He was anchored to the ground like a spell to a soul gem.

Bareck risked a quick look over at his friends, while Vorac was rooted down. They were tiring from the relentless onslaught of Shadow soldiers. Even with her amazing amount of magicka, Keyarrion couldn't keep up her assault much longer. Bareck glanced up at the black sky. For some reason they could still see even in the pitch blackness…but what if Bareck could shed some light on their situation?

Grinning wickedly, he raised his hands again and cast the most powerful light spell he knew. A bright white light lit up the entire clearing. Every single Shadow stopped dead in their tracks, howling in pain as they struggled to cover their eyes. The ones closest to the light actually disintegrated. Keyarrion and Baurus re-doubled their efforts, heartened by the light.

Bareck turned back to Vorac only to get slammed across the face with a heavy taloned hand. Bareck flew backwards 10 ft before slamming into a tree. Dazed, he lay there, bleeding from his nose, mouth and ears, while Vorac strode over to him. Bareck had sparked his irrational anger and Vorac considered being punished by the Dark Guardian a small price to pay should he kill the Bosmer. Vorac grabbed him by his hair and lifted him off his feet. Then, ignoring the grinding of bones in his broken hand, he used Bareck as his personal punching bag, using his entire body behind each blow. Blood and saliva flew from Bareck's mouth with each agonizing blow, the air in his body escaping with a rush. Vorac grew bored and threw Bareck down as easily as if he were a rag doll. Then he noticed the scars on Bareck's bare back and neck. He took his claws and re-opened the old wounds that his summoned shadow flyer had first inflicted. He dug deeper than the flyer had, revealing in the feeling of warm blood gushing over his hands and Bareck's agonized screams. Bareck writhed on the ground, trying to escape those claws but it only served to arouse Vorac's cruelty even further. He created new scars on Bareck's back, shredding it to bits. Then he flipped the Bosmer over and ground him into the rocky earth with one horny foot. Bareck screamed even louder as bits of rock and dirt ground into his ripped back. Pain overcame all his senses. He couldn't see, couldn't hear, couldn't breath. He just wanted it all to stop.

"_Move! Get up! Do something!"_ Re-Asker yelled at him.

"I…can't…" Bareck groaned.

"_Yes you can! You still have one thing he doesn't!"_

"What…?"

"Think, _woodlander,_ think!"

"Light…"

"_Yes! That and what else?"_

"Uh…"

"_Your_ heart_! Use it!_"

Bareck looked up at Vorac standing over him, laughing in cruel delight over the pain and weakness of his victim. Anger stirred in Bareck's heart, spreading to his stomach and head, finally consuming him. It was the same anger he felt when he saw Kvatch lying in smoldering ruins, faced countless Deadra and went against Mehrunes Dagon so Martin could light the Dragon Fires.

"How _dare_ you!" He screamed. Using every last shred of energy he had in his body he bunched all his muscles and surged up, grabbing Vorac's foot and slamming the astonished Shadow to the ground.

Bareck's skin seemed to grow darker with anger and his eyes glowed red. His teeth and nails became longer and he seemed more Shadow than elf now in his anger. Vorac, like the deadra, only feared one other thing…other Shadows. For the first time in his undead life…he was afraid.

Bareck ripped Vorac apart using his teeth and nails. Unlike Vorac, he did not delight in this torture. He wanted to stop, but the anger had taken control and was in too deep in his mind. Vorac shrieked and begged beneath him as he was ripped apart but Bareck never stopped. Finally, when Vorac ceased moving, Bareck was able to pull his mind out his rage and backed off, panting. Vorac wasn't dead…not yet. He laughed weakly as Bareck moved closer, looking him in the eye.

"Fool. Kill me, then. You only pushed yourself closer to the edge. I might be gone…but I still won." He said weakly, and then he laughed.

His laugh sent rage streaking through Bareck's body again. He screamed in rage and pushed all his energy into the most powerful lightning spell he ever cast. Electricity crackled through his chest and down his arms. It wildly raced through the air, striking the remaining Shadow soldiers, dissipating them where they stood, but a majority of it struck Vorac. There was a blinding flash of blue-white light, a deafening boom that seemed to rattle the very earth, and then silence.

Keyarrion and Baurus slowly rose on shaky legs, rubbing the light spots out of their eyes before looking around the clearing. The sun and wind had returned with the departure of the Shadows, making it seem as if there never had been evil in the clearing except for the tell-tale puddles of blackish blood, burns and scorches from spells and a huge black burn where Vorac had fallen. Bareck lay on his side in the snow not far from the burn mark.

They ran to him and turned him over, fervently hoping he was alive.

He was, just barely though. His skin had darkened, making him resemble a Dunmer more than a Bosmer…a short Dunmer, except that he had long fangs poking out from his upper lip and long nails that had fused with the tips of his fingers, forming talons. His back was ripped to shred and all his old wounds had been reopened, spilling bright red blood over the pristine snow. Red, not black, but red. He hadn't gone too far then, there was still hope.

Re-Asker came running from the house, holding a bottle in her hands. She fell to the ground next to him and was getting ready to pour the contents of the bottle into his mouth when Bareck stopped breathing.

"No…Dear spirits, NO!"

XxXxXx TBC…

Author's note: maybe he should have worn armor after all...

-Vanillathunder215


	14. Not Over Yet

Slowly, Bareck's eyes fluttered open, but for a moment, he wondered if he had. Everything was just as dark with them shut. He lay quietly for a moment, trying to figure out where he was while trying to ignore the pain throbbing from every limb and joint in his body. After a little while, his eyes adjusted to the dark, telling him that he was someplace…he just didn't know where.

The more he tried to think about it, the more he became confused. Hadn't he been in the Jerall Mountains? Hadn't there been a fight? Where were Baurus and Keyarrion? He hadn't just dreamed this whole thing up had he?

His head spun as he slowly pushed himself upright, making groan him a little, more that just from pain. He closed his eyes and rubbed at them until the pain subsided to a more bearable level before opening them again, taking in his surroundings.

He was in a forest (not the mountains?), surrounded by towering oaks and elms…reminding him a lot of his native Valenwood. The thought of his homeland sent regret and loneliness twisting at his heart. He hadn't wanted to leave…but he had had no choice then, not since…

He shook his head. This was no time for reminiscing. He needed to figure out where he was and how to get back to Keyarrion and Baurus. He stood slowly, using the support of an oak to steady himself, waiting for his shaky legs to fully bear his weight. When he felt steady enough, he began to walk around, looking for any clues.

The forest was quiet…too quiet, even for one that had been born and raised in the quiet of a forest. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up as he held still, straining to pick up anything, through sight, sound, smell, feel or taste, that didn't feel right. He stayed like that for a while until his back ached, the sore muscles complaining over the unnecessary exertion. He relaxed a little. Maybe he was just being over-cautious, but he still couldn't shake the feeling of something being off.

Like he normally did when tense, he ran his tongue from side to side over his teeth, feeling the difference between molars, pre-molars, canine, incisors, back to pre-molars and ending again with molars. The action forced him to calm the frenzy of thoughts that hot-wired through his mind, and opened his senses even more, both to him and his surroundings. Suddenly his tongue froze on his teeth. His eyes widened in sudden realization and he moved his tongue over his teeth once more, slower this time, lingering over the canines especially.

There were no more fangs there.

Eagerly, he looked down at his arms. Sure enough, they were the hue he had been born with, not dark like a Dunmer. While he had no means to be able to see, he was sure that his eyes had gone back to his normal blue. Gone, too, were the talons on his fingers, replaced by small, round, blunt nails that had little value as a weapon. There was no more lust for blood screaming at him, no more insane energy or mad strength in him that nearly drove him to kill his friends, say nothing of those unfortunate bandits.

He was elated. More than elated. He couldn't even begin to describe what it was like to suddenly have his own body back, with his own natural instincts and not something else. Though he had had this body for the past 122 years of his life and the Shadow-like qualities for only a few days, it made no difference; it only served to make him appreciate what he had even more. Still, he almost couldn't believe it…he had won, THEY had won. They had defeated the Shadows and he had lived and was now back to normal.

Then he stopped. If they had won…and he was back to normal…and he was certain that he had been in the Jerall mountains with Baurus and Keyarrion…then why in all 16 levels of Oblivion was he here in these bloody woods?!? Once again, questions fired through his mind, each more frantic than the last and no amount of running his tongue over his teeth could calm him. His most frightening thought was that he was dead, but he managed to dissuade himself from that as he believed in an afterlife that did NOT consisting of a forest…at least not a forest like this one.

He looked around at the trees surrounding him again, this time looking at more than just the trees themselves. Sure enough, there was a chilling familiarity to these trees. The hairs rose on his neck again as it finally dawned on him.

No fevered dream this, but a living nightmare. He was in the Black Woods; he could see that now in the dead-looking, blackened bark of the trees, of the persisting gloom and the overall dread that hung over the woods like a suffocating blanket. He couldn't believe that he, a bloody Wood Elf, hadn't seen that…especially him.

However, he wasn't as frightened as he thought he would be. In fact, he was quite calm now that he knew where he was. He was, after all, back to his normal self. He had no need to fear falling away from his humanity… mer-anity or whatever…into a demonic world. A plan began to form in his head. Then he smiled, a cocky half-smile that had prevailed over many adventures and had pissed off Jauffre more than once.

XxXxXx

As Bareck walked through the woods, he noticed that the gloom seemed to deepen and the black trees get, if possible, darker. He knew that he was getting close, which was exactly what he wanted.

Soon, as he had planned on, he came to the giant black oak tree; its dead crooked limbs stretching out over an impossible dark abyss. With a jaunty confidence he didn't feel, he strode over to the Black Gate.

Red eyes appeared suddenly not 20 ft. away from him, startling him but he managed to keep his expression neutral. A deep rumbling voice echoed, just as it had in his fevered dreams.

"I have lost many of my loyal servants and my general Vorac." The Guardian rumbled, "Yet have I gained a warrior in return." It wasn't a question.

Bareck didn't respond but walked closer towards the black abyss. As he got closer, he could make out shapes beyond; morbid shadows of those who had fallen to the poisoned blades and were now stuck for eternity in the Black Woods as Shadows. He suppressed a shiver as he stood there. He could hear voices beyond calling him, just as they had when he had been in the middle of the transformation. Yet, this time they did not stir any longing in him. He felt no need to cross over to them. As he stood there at the very entrance, taunting the Shadows, he turned to the Guardian.

"We will meet again and next time, it won't be in your favor. You have gained nothing!" He said. Before the full meaning of his words could sink into the demon's head, Bareck turned and ran away from the Black Gate, an earth-shattering roar of rage following him.

He ran on and on, the tree trunks blurring together in a dark mass. He didn't care where he went, just as long as it put distance between him and that horrible place. Faster and faster he went, his breath coming harsh now and his legs burning. Pain shot up his sides and down his arms, making him falter a step before going on again. Even when he slowed, the world around him remained blurred. It began to twist and turn, becoming a vortex. His feet left the ground as he was pulled towards it. Light grew from its center, blinding him after the darkness of the forest. He squeezed his eyes shut and held him arms up to his face. It got brighter and brighter, making him cry out with the pain of the light as it made his head feel like it would split open. More pain, all through his body. From what he didn't know. Something pulled at his arms, exposing his face to the bright light. He tried to fight it, to pull his arms back, but whatever held them had an iron grip. He couldn't get loose.

"Bareck!"

He heard his name being called, very faint and from far away. For a brief moment he thought it was Lurin… but it could not be. She was…

"Bareck!"

His name again. This time closer and louder. He really thought the voice was Lurin. His heart jumped in his chest. If only it was her.

"Wake up, you bloody wood elf, you're about to rip my arms out!"

That voice, however, belonged to only one person.

Bareck's eyes snapped open and he found himself lying on the floor in a wood cabin, Baurus doing his level best to hold down Bareck's convulsing body. As he came more to his senses and regained control of his body, Bareck stilled. Baurus leaned back with a relieved sigh and wiped away at the sweat forming on his brow.

"You know, for a midget tree-climber with pointy ears you're pretty strong." Baurus said.

"And for a dark-skinned half-wit in a tin suit you can hold on to such a midget pretty good!" Bareck said brightly.

Baurus glared and swatted at Bareck's arm gently, "As over-joyed as I am that you're back to normal, you were more bearable when you were trying to rip my throat out with your teeth."

"Yeah, about that…"

"Don't mention it, Bareck. You weren't in control then. It's best left to the past." A bright pink braid fell into Bareck's line of sight, leading up to Keyarrion's face, her nose bright red. She smiled at him, her head cocked to one side, "You know this is the first time I've seen you look normal…not passed out or looking like a midget Dunmer."

"Great, now both of you are on the midget thing?" Bareck sat up, all his muscles protesting. He was getting really sick of this muscle pain.

"By the way…who is Lurin?" Keyarrion asked.

Bareck froze. "Why do you ask?" he asked slowly.

"You were screaming her name out right before you woke up."

Bareck didn't know what to say. He hadn't meant to call out that name that was for sure. He didn't want to tell them, he couldn't, but at the same time he didn't want to outright refuse his friends that had been by him this whole damn nightmare.

"Enough, enough. That one was just fought his way back from the Black Woods and the Dark Guardian, more battles than you have fought. Leave him be." A rough voice hissed at Keyarrion, causing her to shrink back sheepishly.

Re-Asker padded over to Bareck and looked him in the eye. Amber eyes that were starting to cloud with cataracts met with bright blue eyes, still shining with youth. After a long moment, the feline amber eyes creased in a smile and worn yellowed teeth were exposed as she smiled.

"This one is stronger than the Shadows. This is good. This one will defeat the Shadows, yes?"

XxXxXx TBC

Author's note; I'm so sorry I haven't updated in, I dunno, several months. Writer's block combined with way-to-busy schedule you know how it is. But Bareck's story continues and I am working on getting another chapter up soon. Once again, my sincerest apologies on taking so flippin long on this chapter.

-Vanillathunder215


	15. Bareck's Tale

"You can't be serious!" Baurus said incredulously, "Bareck, these shadow things are NOT deadra…I don't think this will be so…"

"You are not about to say 'so easily beaten' were you? Because if you were, I would have to beat you." Bareck answered, "And yes, I am going to try and rid the world of these things. At least this time I don't have to go to a long dead Ayleid city filled to the brim with goblins, skeletons and, oh did I mention the Lich? Nor do I have to go to a gods-forsaken cursed Blade holy ruin with the enraged spirits of long dead Blades that are out to kill whoever walks in. I only have to face creepy shadow monsters that try to rip your throat out in a blood lust similar to what a troll exhibits."

Baurus was about to argue, he had his mouth open and his tongue was just starting to form words when he noticed Bareck's face. He had tilted his head a little towards his chest and had locked his jaw hard enough for the muscles in his cheeks and neck to stand out, throwing harsh lines on his features. He had narrowed his blue eyes ever so slightly, just enough to give him a hard, immoveable look. Baurus knew that look. He also knew that, when Bareck put that face on, he wasn't going to win any argument with the elf. He closed his mouth and settled for just shaking his head, muttering to himself. Damn elf won again.

XxXxXx

Later that day, Bareck slid outside, unnoticed by everybody, to simply be alone. He sat down on a rock not too far from the cabin and looked out over the valley to the sunset. It had been a while since he had last taken the time to just sit and watch the sunset. The brilliant oranges and pinks and purples captivated him like it never had before. Maybe it was his close encounter with a living death that made him appreciate it more. He was so captivated by these thoughts and the sunset that he failed to hear approaching footsteps.

"Danger may be past, but others still lurk around. Best for Bareck not to let guard down, yes?" A familiar rough hiss came from behind him.

Bareck started so badly that he nearly fell off his perch, but his good balance saved him. Resettling himself he looked back at the old Kahjiit standing there, her graying fur ruffled gently in the slight breeze. She came and settled down next to him, not saying anything else, but simply enjoying the view. The silence between them was not an uncomfortable one, but rather a pleasant one that allowed each to be with their own thoughts for a while. Finally, Bareck broke the silence.

"Re-Asker, what can you tell me about these Shadows?" He asked, "I mean, where they dwell and exactly who are they? Especially that guardian…"

"Ah, but let this one ask Bareck this…why do you call it 'Dark Guardian' hmmm?" She asked, a sly smile shaping her feline face, looking at the Bosmer with a sidelong glance. Bareck, for his part, was a little confused and it showed on his face as he looked at Re-Asker. "What this one means is only ones of the Dark Brotherhood know what a Dark Guardian is."

Bareck felt the blood drain from his face. He had, truth be told, been in the Dark Brotherhood, had even carried out contracts, but he hadn't been back in a long while for work…mostly because the reason why he had joined, other than the murder he committed, had left him. Seeing no more reason to stay nor having the motivation to do so, he just simply never went back. Looking back on it now, it did seem suspicious that he kept saying 'Dark Guardian'. Maybe he should have called it something else…

Now he felt panicked, like a deer caught in a trap waiting for the wolves to come and tear it to shreds. He tried to keep his face blank, his voice steady as he carefully chose his words, "Why do you ask that?" he said slowly, keeping his gaze on the ground, "I don't have any ties with the Brotherhood. I call the thing a 'Dark Guardian' simply because I have no other name for it and it was the first thing that sprung to my mind at the time."

He forced himself to keep breathing evenly while he waited for Re-Asker's reply, which proved very difficult as his heart pounded madly in his chest. For her part, Re-Asker didn't say anything for a while, just stared long and hard at Bareck before finally answering Bareck's original question.

"This one is very sorry…Knows nothing about the Shadows, just how to cure the poison that makes them." She said with sincerity, "But, this one knows another one that does know. The one is an adventurer, like Bareck, and knows much. Go find Sherina in Leyawiin. That one holds the knowledge Bareck seeks."

She smiled then, showing her yellowed pointed teeth and gently patted him on the shoulder before getting up, with more agility than one would guess for someone her age, and left the Bosmer alone with his thoughts again. He had a lot to think about.

XxXxXx

As the threesome headed back down the mountains the next day, Re-Asker's house long since out of sight behind the rocks, Keyarrion began to chatter lightly, almost oblivious to Baurus' brooding and to Bareck's thoughtful silence. Every now and then he would banter back and forth with her, his old self showing through, but his mind was swimming with a thousand thoughts, preventing him from putting his full attention anywhere. Keyarrion, however, didn't seem to notice. She was happy that the crisis was over and was more than eager to get to know the true Bareck, not the sick elf she had come to know.

Suddenly, she ripped him from his thoughts with a simple question, "So who is this Lurin? You never answered me the first time I asked."

She had asked it innocently, not knowing how much it hurt to bring that subject up. Bareck swallowed a little and looked up at her. She was watching him curiously with her head to one side. Baurus, too, was watching. He had never heard of any Lurin in all the time he had known Bareck, which, though it seemed forever, had only been about six months. He realized he didn't really know the Bosmer at all. He was curious about this Lurin.

Bareck sighed. Now or never, he thought, I guess someone needs to know…might as well be those I trust.

"To know this story better, I have to start from the very beginning…my beginning." He started, "I was born and raised in Valenwood, not far from Arenthia. When I was about 50 or so I met Lurin. She was the most gorgeous Bosmer I had ever seen; big green eyes and long brown hair. It took me a long time to woo her but I finally did. We married and lived in the city of Arenthia. We lived together like that for about 50 years or so…no children. When they say elven children are slow to come they mean it. But one day she got word that her father, not one of the smartest mer out there but he was good to us, had made some sort of deal with some Dunmer from House Telvanni. Well, the idiot didn't have enough to pay them with and the Dunmer, the Telvanni in particular, don't like to be cheated on a deal. They dragged him to Morrowind and sold him as a slave for as much as he owed them. Lurin got really worried and wanted to go rescue him. He was getting old and didn't seem to have the resistance to disease like most of my kin do. I wouldn't change her mind as it was her father, so I went with her to make sure a bad situation didn't get worse. It did.

She found her father and tried to convince the Dunmer who owned him, Dren, I'll never forget that name, to give him back to her. Fetcher wouldn't even though he was worthless as a slave, but he offered to sell him back to us. There was no way we could afford the price…it was so ridiculously high. But Dren wouldn't change his mind. So Lurin did the unthinkable…she offered herself in her father's stead; as a slave. I couldn't believe she did that…I was all for sneaking in at night and smuggling him out but she didn't like the idea. Apparently her father couldn't sneak if his life depended on it, even though it did, and she knew I, and her father too, would be killed if I got caught. I tired to convince to let me to it instead of her, but she refused…she wanted me to get her father back home safely. I couldn't convince her; short of simply knocking her out letting her come to after the deal had been made. But she went and sealed the deal before I could have any say otherwise. There was nothing else I could do… except watch as she was dragged away. I carried out her wishes and got her father home before going back to Morrowind to get her back. I didn't care if I had to slit every throat on that plantation; I was going to get her back. She was my world…the only thing I had.

But I was too late. She was born, bred and raised Valenwood. She had the immunity to every disease known there…but not to Morrowind diseases. Dren's plantation is on the island of Vvardenfell, which has a big volcano in the middle of it. That volcano spews out ash the carries a nasty disease it in; blight. She got the blight and…she…she died before I could get her.

Dren, however, didn't think he had gotten his payment in full, so he took me as a slave… well, he forced me into slavery because there was no way I was going that quietly, not with Lurin dead. In the end he got me and I spent the longest 20 years of my life at that plantation. Not long after, I also caught the blight and spent the most miserable month getting over it. Towards the end, I almost gave up…I just wanted to die, but, somehow, I lived through it and one day, for no reason, I was released. I immediately headed back to Arenthia…I wanted to honor Lurin's last wish of me and make sure her father was alright even though I had never really gotten along with the man, but I found that he had also gotten the blight and had died from it not long after I had left. I went to Cyrodiil not long after…I had nothing left in Valenwood. I've been here ever since."

XxXxXx

Later that night, with Baurus' snores filling the air, over-riding the deep rhythmic breathing of the much quieter Bosmer, Keyarrion sat bathed in the dying fire's light. She had turned over Bareck's story in her head a thousand times, her emotions twisting. She had thought she had figured Bareck out…thought she had knew him. How wrong she was!

Still, she knew one thing was certain; Bareck was loyal and determined. He would hunt down these Shadows and destroy them even if it would wring his last breath out of him. And she was going to help him, no matter what.

XxXxXx TBC…

Author's note: Next up, getting ready to get rid of those damn shadows!!!

-Vanillathunder215


	16. Clearing the Past

More than a week went by without any incident for the threesome, which quickly bored both Bareck and Baurus. Keyarrion, on the other hand, was used to the bit more sedate life of a legion patrol. Meaning (according to Bareck, who had never really gotten along with the legion in the first place) that she was used to spending all day long aimlessly wandering around the roads in Cyrodiil, looking pretty, just to make gullible merchants feel better when traveling but never much use when it came to fighting.

Bareck had spent a better part of the next hour dodging fireballs that Keyarrion kept hurling at him.

The morning after that little "incident", Keyarrion woke to see White Gold Tower rising majestically through the early morning mist. She had seen the tower hundreds of thousands of times but it still took her breath away at how beautiful it was. This time was no different; they were looking down on the valley were the Imperial City sat on its island, though it was all obscured by the dawn's mist, and the early morning sky, just starting to lighten with bright pinks, yellows, oranges and lavenders, highlighted the tower on one side before the dark mountains rose up. The sight calmed her and filled her with a passionate feeling that had first inspired her, so long ago, to join the legion.

She stayed still a few moments longer, soaking in the scene, before a sharp stomp and a snort from Mina brought her back to the present.

"Pretty, isn't it?" Baurus asked, looking past her towards the tower, "I lived in the Imperial City, by the emperor himself, for several years…that is, until I met Bareck when the emperor was assassinated. Unfortunately, you can't see White Gold Tower from Cloud Ruler Temple, even on clear days. I missed seeing it."

Keyarrion smiled. She certainly could understand his sentiments. And Speaking of a certain Bosmer… She suddenly realized that Bareck wasn't with them. She gave Baurus a questioning look.

"Don't bother." He said, fully understanding the look.

"Don't bother with what?"

"Asking where Bareck is. I have no idea as to where that damn wood elf has wandered off to now. Still, we keep going. He'll join up with us sooner or later…and he better have a really good story for it this time." Baurus mumbled under his breath.

"You aren't going to look for him?" Keyarrion asked, stupefied.

"Look, I'm not sure how many times we gotta keep telling you this; the elf can take care of himself just fine. These past few weeks were the only exception in which I've ever seen him needing someone's help." Baurus explained as patiently as the Redguard could muster, "Also, don't bother trying to keep track of him. That's close to impossible. Back during the whole scramble when we were trying to get Martin on the throne, Bareck set all of Cloud Ruler Temple in an uproar by suddenly disappearing to go off on these suicidal missions Jauffre kept coming up with…leaving the Blades that were supposed to go with him to make sure he didn't get killed. He'd show back up a few days later, alive though with a few new scars, with news of a completed mission or with whatever item he was supposed to get. He always did it alone and always got it done…and always came back."

"Simply disappear?" Keyarrion asked with a laugh, easily believing that Bareck was capable of setting an entire stronghold of tough stoic warriors into a panicked mess.

"By the Nine, yes!" Baurus exclaimed, remembering full well the frustration that accompanied the amusement, "One day you would see him and then, suddenly, he'd be gone, only to reappear a few days later, though no one saw him come or go! He'd frustrate the watch guards because, no matter how hard they would be looking for him, he'd always manage to slip inside the temple, not just inside the walls but all the way inside the central building, without anyone noticing. After a while we all just gave up and acknowledged him when we saw him. Smug little bastard knew it too. The only time we actually saw him come and go was when Martin sent him off to Mankar Camoran's haven, or whatever the bloody hell it was, through a portal in the Great Hall! It was rather amusing to watch the portal literally spit him back out some time later though…haven't let him forget how he landed on his butt."

Keyarrion laughed again, her concern completely gone now. "Ok, ok, I get it. Bareck is just fine on his own. Until he returns then, what do we do?"

Baurus smiled and pointed down the road, "We keep going."

Keyarrion nodded and threw her pack onto Mina's saddle and untied the horse, "Alright then, let's go. Any more amusing stories you have to tell as we go?"

Baurus' smile got wider, "There was this one time that Bareck and I had to go track down some spies and, as usual, Bareck took off by himself but there was no way I was going to be left behind. Oh, spirits, the pandemonium that followed that…"

XxXxXx

Bareck had no problem leaving his two friends in the still dark morning. He knew that nothing would happen to them and he trusted that Baurus would keep going, with or without him, especially given their…agreement of the past. Besides, this was one errand he needed to do alone.

He had seen the White Gold Tower last night, his keen eyes picking it out when his human companions no longer could in the darkness. After they had made camp last night and long after the other two had fallen asleep, Bareck had continued to stare out into the darkness were he knew White Gold Tower was, even though, by then, even his keen eyes couldn't see it anymore.

He had left some hours after that.

It was still dark as he approached the gate to the temple district, which was fine by him. He didn't want a lot of people around right now anyways. He still didn't like being called Champion of Cyrodiil and the people in the Imperial City, especially in the temple district, had a very annoying tendency as identifying him as such. It made him feel as if he didn't really have a name, a true identity, beyond that of that one single night. That, more than anything, had bothered him.

The guards, sleepy as they often were near the end of their shift, paid him little to no heed. After all, crisis was over, right? Bareck thought to himself, no need to be on edge so much anymore. Thank the gods.

Bareck walked resolutely towards the temple, his eyes on the giant dragon, just like last time. Thinking of his last trip to the temple made his stomach clench, not with panic and despair, but with something akin to embarrassment. Still, he reminded himself, he had been sick, injured and not in his right mind. Now that he was himself…it was time to come to peace with the past.

The silence and solitude within the roofless temple calmed Bareck down immensely. He felt himself relax, any fear or tension he held bled out of his body. He walked up to the giant stone dragon and fell to his knees beside it and leaned against it, pressing his forehead to the stone, and closed his eyes, slipping into a reverie of sorts.

He stayed that way for a long time, going through all that he had meant to say to Martin in his mind through his trance. Finally, after a long time, when the sun was just starting to lighten up the temple, he broke out of the trace. He stood, feeling calmer than he ever had in the last several months. As he did so, something fell from his lap, making a light metallic noise as it hit the ground. Bareck picked it up off the ground and saw that it was a necklace with a medallion; a dragon in the exact same pose as the statue he stood next to now etched onto its silver surface on one side and a dragon claw crossing a long sword, Bareck's preferred weapon of choice, on the other side.

Bareck pulled the necklace on over his neck, feeling slightly comforted as soon as it settled there, like the necklace was offering solace to him. Bareck stared at the medallion for a while longer, his eyes frozen on the image of the claw crossed over the sword. Suddenly, he knew what he had to do. He clenched the medallion in his fist, feeling the images on either side press into his skin. He felt a sudden pulse of magic burst into him, coursing through his veins, under his skin, making his body tingle with the sudden surge of energy. He felt alive, like he never had before. He tilted his head back and cried out to the heavens in a language he never spoken, or even heard for that matter, before.

"_A auran an bala av anyammis va angu. An sunna latta mathmeldi an mor, as an bala av an Aka-ada_!"

Before he could consider the words he had just spoken, he spun around and left the temple, his spirit fired in a way that he had never felt before. He knew what he had to do.

XxXxXx

A/N; writer's block is a pain. This chapter took me about 50 times before the plot bunny finally bit me again…about time to! The words in italics are in Ayleid, if you wanted to know. I did it the best I could, given what resources I had. If it's incorrect or something and you know a correction for it, lemme know! Also, "Aka" is not an Ayleid word…it's Dunmeri since there was no Ayleid word for "dragon".

-Vanillathunder215

Translations:

A – I

Auran – welcome

An – the

Bala – power

Av – of

Anyammis – life

Va – in

Angu – me

Sunna – blessed

Latta – light

Mathmeldi – exiles, drives away

Mor – Dark, as in dark times, not in terms of light

As – by

Aka – dragon

Ada – god

Phrase literally means "I welcome the power of life in me. The blessed light exiles the ill-fated times, by the power of the Dragon God!"

But translated figuratively, it means "I welcome the power of life in me (once again). The blessed light chases away the darkness by the power of the Dragon God!"

not an Ayleid word, Dunmeri word


End file.
